Torchwood: Australia for NaNoWriMo
by Akira444
Summary: Thank you to all my reviewers: I've now reached 9K from the 50K Target. This is Torchwood: Australia, based in Brisbane, Queensland. With Rachael Taylor as Desiree and Melissa George as Simone. Please keep up the great feedback and more chapters will come
1. Chapter 1

The scene around him was a turn of the century Cardiff, bricked houses and red roofed tiles with sandy type flooring underneath his boots. The scene however was becoming a violent blur as he ran, several tufts of sand lifted around him due to the heavy impact his feet were making on the ground. He winced as some grains flicked into his eyes. He rubbed them, continuing to run, his thoughts directly related to the woman he was chasing. Incredibly beautiful, but equally dangerous – she was like a stick of dynamite being examined by the bomb squad with fear of explosion. "Damn woman I swear..." He stopped running for a second as he caught a glimpse of her curvy behind making a dash around a corner into a dark alleyway, followed by the sound of a pistol firing. "Alice!" He shouted again, his voice strained with worry, and yet he was determined to find out why she was even worth of worry. He knew the dedication that came with a team, that one never left another behind. He was struggling to find reason with Alice for the woman had no self control, nor did she bother to think about anyone but herself. But right now, she was running into clear and present danger – although he could not die; Alice could, and the last thing he wanted was to lose a team member before their time. Normal logic would suggest that she deserved to die; but in the eyes of Captain Jack Harkness, this one was different. The first time he was on duty with her, she had killed an alien in cold blood. Jack recalled the feeling of horror he was experiencing the creature barely had time to explain itself. "Alice!" By the time he reached where he saw her running last, she had gone. His feet stood in a puddle of blood and he crouched, touching it briefly with his fingertips. It had not yet coagulated, which meant that the blood was fresh. It looked human, much to his disappointment.

Getting to full height once more, Jack turned his head left and right as his eyes swept the general area. Nearby he could see the casing of the bullet that had been recently fired and he wandered toward it picking it up between his thumb and forefinger. That was not a Torchwood issued bullet. In fact, it resembled a sickening memory the last time he had seen such a bullet as the pit of his stomach growled in agreement. He was striving not to believe that this bullet casing belonged to his rival. But why would he be here in the first place? Surely Earth was not interesting enough to test Captain John Hart's desires. "Alice", he called, turning around slowly but keeping a hand on his own pistol just in case. "Look, if this is some way of trying to prove yourself to me..." not too far away as Jack's eyes snapped to meet the blood curling scream of his female team mate it appeared to come from the roof. "For Pete's sake..."

Jack later heard a thud as he looked up and roughly two meters above him, brunette hair was glistening over the guttering, teasing with flicks of blood as the breeze caressed its curls. Struggling to contain his panic, Jack looked for a quick way up to the roof. Instantly he found himself thinking like Alice and spotting a nearby downpipe, where he ran a few meters until he swiftly grabbed it and started to scale himself up the wall. His fingertips smeared against bloody fingerprints and Jack felt a little sick with no thanks to the smell coming from the roof. It smelt of blood and exposed organs with a hint of semen. He struggled to think what sort of pain his corrupted lover was in. He swung himself around to the left of the pipe and rolled onto his side where he then got to full height and pulled his pistol, his chest heaving anxiously. There he saw Alice laying there, her throat ripped open. As she breathed, blood spurted from the artery and dripped around the base of her head. As his eyes drifted further along her body he noticed she was naked – the organs within her chest exposed and her heart missing. It was beating in the open palm of her hand, as if it were mocking Jack in some way. Oddly, though, the heart was larger than most human hearts Jack had seen during his time on Earth. He tried to contain the blood pouring from Alice's horrific wounds and it seemed to be a lost cause for Jack. He was covered in blood and it only seemed to be getting worse. "I'm so sorry", he said to her. "Do you know who did this to you?"

Alice's eyes closed. It was apparent she was trying to speak and so Jack forced himself to remain silent. No sound came from her lips apart from struggled breath.

Disappointed, Jack soon realised that he did hold a deep respect for Alice. She was like Jack in a way, he realised. Her scent could drive any man or woman wild and he wondered if she was from the fifty-first century like him. Of course, that was impossible, because he would have known if she was. He stroked her cheek, and with a sigh he removed his rough military coat in an attempt to cover her abused body. Yet, bloodied fingers clasped his wrist and wild eyes met his therefore stopping him from his actions. It surprised him, for moments ago he had thought she died.

"You insane man", she began with a chortle; blood pouring from her mouth and covering her yellowed teeth. "You insane... beautifully insane man". Alice smiled a little. If only Alice could tell him the truth, reveal her deepest secret.

When Alice shared her bloodied smile, it made Jack's heart break. He inwardly vowed that he would find her killer, if it would take a hundred years then so be it.

"I'll find the bastard who did this to you", Jack said softly. "I promise". The wind around them picked up and a brief growl came from below. A pack of wild, hungry dogs were circling the scene, ready to grab whatever was left of Alice Guppy.

Seconds later, Alice gave one last final gasp and she sat up, gripping Jack's tie and allowing her blood to stain it as it dripped through her fingers. She stared at him, her wild eyes darting but then suddenly paused as she finally found his soul.

"Don't wait up for me".

She died in his arms with a limp, her heart rolling from her hands and spurting one last beat of blood. And then Jack cried, holding her close with his hand cradling the base of her head.

The century had turned again, this time drifting into a powerful new millennium all together. The world was becoming more aware of alien life with London and Cardiff somehow being at the centre of it all. The defeat of the 456 caused a lot of uneasy tension between the Governments of Earth, hostilities fresh when it came to international talks at the United Nations. On top of that, mysterious deaths and objects were now scattering around the Brisbane City area, a thriving city located in the state of Queensland, Australia. Public outcry for answers and control only meant one thing. The Prime Minister frowned as she switched off the television and turned to face her cabinet as they sat at the round table in one of the more private rooms in Parliament House. Her eyes fell upon the Foreign Minister as he sat there looking rather nervous, sweating and pulling at his collar. After recently being sacked from the top job himself, tensions were indeed high between the pair. He was struggling to find answers to explain this sudden spike in alien situations and he passed a yellow folder to the PM across the table. She took it in silence, a logo stamped on the front looking like an arrow of honeycombs. She opened the file and clicked her jaw.

"Torchwood?" She asked him, shaking her head and flicking through the documents. "Are you suggesting we build such an organisation?"

The foreign Minister shook his head and pushed his glasses up the sweaty bridge of his nose. "One already exists, under the Brisbane River; apparently it has been there since the turn of the Century".

"Torchwood London was destroyed a few years ago. Cardiff has rumours of one Gwen Cooper struggling to put it back together after their own Government ordered the deaths of their operatives... something suggests that reforming an organisation here would only bring their operatives unnecessary attention". Slowly she sat down in the high chair, eyes glancing at the folder once more. "This man", her finger tapped the photograph of Captain Jack Harkness; "...has been involved with the organisation for over a hundred years".

The Minister sighed once more, taking off his glasses and rubbing them in thick circular motions with the corner of his shirt. He put them on again, catching the photograph of the immortal man. "He is alien himself. However, he was reported missing immediately after the 456 invasion".

The Prime Minister got to her feet and turned, gazing through the window at the grounds before her. She was beginning to have a change of heart about Torchwood, perhaps Australia could benefit from such an organization controlling alien technology. "Find out what you can about the old team", her attention was now diverted to the Minister for Defence.

"No files exist", he said. "I have sourced the location myself. Completely destroyed internally, it would cause a large black hole in our budget to refit it".

"Is it a price we can afford?" The Prime Minister asked the Treasurer who nodded.

"Providing the Media is kept quiet about it". The Treasurer spoke. He seemed a little nervous, no doubt information like this would get leaked to the Media and he wasn't sure how the public would react to an organization built around protecting their country from alien influences.

The Prime Minister nodded to herself and sat back down again. "I want Harkness to supervise this new team. I don't care what it takes. Find him. Feed him millions of dollars if you have to, I want the institute rebuilt and ready for action within three weeks". She noticed the Treasurer twitching. "Something to add, there?"

The Treasurer looked between the Foreign Minister and the Defence Minister. "Seems to be a bit of an impossible feat, don't you think? The institute was completely destroyed. Valuable resources we put aside for building new schools would be fed into building..."

The PM shook her head. "Protecting our country from alien threats is just as important as building new schools. But the fact is, if the 456 are still out there... we'll be ready for them. Do what you can. I want a report in twelve hours". She stood, as did the others, and she left the room.

"I'll contact London and see if there's any word on Harkness", the Foreign Minister swallowed hard, eyeing his counterparts nervously as the group also exited.


	2. Chapter 2

EPISODE ONE –

A woman jolted upright in bed with a startled gasp, dripping with sweat and anxiety as she shook her right hand to restore feeling into it. She could feel the powerful muscle in the palm of her hand, blood dripping between her fingertips. She raised her hand and wriggled her fingers before her eyes to ensure that it was just a dream. It was too realistic for her liking, waking up and gagging to the point where it seemed to feel that she was returning to life. Her partner was sleeping soundly beside her and grunted upon her poking of his shoulder. Frustrated that he wasn't responding to her poke, she got to her feet and fluffed out her blonde hair from its restless look. It was very early morning, and she looked at the clock to see that it was three thirty. Shaking her head at the repetitiveness of her dreams and how violent they were becoming she wondered briefly if there was a reason behind it.

She jumped a little as she felt the sheets rustle on the bed to see her partner sitting up, his muscular back facing her and he therefore stretched, allowing his hands to rest on his thighs with the sheet still gently draped around them. She turned on the bedside light to make the shadows around her stop recreating the scenes of her dreams.

"I was having the most wonderful dream", he began, his rounded British accent with just a scent of American causing the woman behind him to glare. He knew how to hit her when it came to sarcasm. He got up and faced her, allowing the sheet to drop exposing his naked form. "I assume you were not?"

She shook her head and dressed in a thin dressing gown, which she had taken from the nearby open wardrobe stuffed with dirty clothes from the day before for the washing hamper was full. "You're not helping, John". She grumbled. "I think I need help, this time I..." she looked at him now as he decided to put on some pants and moved around the bed to stand behind her. His arms wrapped around her waist, his overnight breath stale on the nape of her neck. "...I died. My own heart was beating in my hand, and a man. A man was there". She felt his fingertips draw back folds of her blonde hair as he kissed her neck gently. "The one I've been dreaming about".

"Hmm", the man called John began, drawing her a little closer. "What was his name again? Ah... yes... Jack?" he felt her wince as he held her tighter as John spoke that name. "He was not the one who killed you?" He did honestly seem concerned, as she turned around in his arms to face him. She let her arms drop onto his broad shoulders and she lightly kissed him. "I'll take that as a no". He smiled a little. "Since we're up, how about we go for a walk?"

"A walk?" Her eyes darted at his manic suggestion. "It's freezing outside. Besides, unlike some I have to start work in two hours". She drew her arms away from around his neck and put her hands on his wrists as his hands fell from her waist. "Sorry, John. These dreams are just making me fall apart mentally. All this talk about a... Torchwood, and after what happened recently with the children, I'm beginning to wonder if it is a message of some sort".

John's fingers clenched as he listened to her speak, she had always been brutally honest with him to the point where she allowed him to sleep with her for the first time. "Don't talk nonsense, Simone", he started, a little firmer than he expected to sound. "All right. I'll contact my psychic friend tomorrow and see if she can help you make some sense out of these dreams. All this talk about that Jack is making me a little jealous". He allowed his upper lip to curl into a smirk as he drew Simone into a hug, caressing her hair between his fingertips. "If I had my way, that Jack of yours would be dead by my hand for tormenting you so". There was something about his words that made Simone suggest he was being serious. He drew away from her slightly, this time letting his fingertips caress her high cheekbone. "Back to bed, hmm? I have a sure way that will help relax you over the next two hours".

Simone frowned, her full lips then pursing and she shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know... I'm really not in the..." she was cut off when he kissed her, the kiss that always made her weak at the knees. "...I suppose I'm up for one more round..." she let him lead her to the bed as he gingerly took off her dressing gown. "...I love it when you're jealous of my dreams". A brief moan escaped as the bedside light turned off.

The Australian Government didn't have to look very far for Captain Jack Harkness. He was sitting on a bench in Brunswick Street, located in the infamous Fortitude Valley, reading a well thumbed copy of the MX newspaper given free to those who used the city's public transport. It was winter during the year 2010, the cool night causing a decline in a lot of usual party goers around the area. Jack was unaware however that the Government were looking for him, but he knew for a fact that a Torchwood did exist in the city roughly around the time he joined the team in Cardiff. Therefore, following the events of the 456 it would only be a matter of time before the Government caught up with him and would no doubt ask him to form a new team capable of defending this country against harmful aliens and technology.

There was nothing back for him in Cardiff. Jack had made the cruel but necessary decision to sacrifice his own grandson against Steven's will to end his short life by transmitting the frequency which destroyed the 456 and thusly saving the children of Earth. The look in his daughter's eyes was traumatic, Alice would never speak to him again and he found it rather ironic how the name seemed to haunt him since his first days in Torchwood. He'd lost Ianto, the only part of his life which kept him going, kept him above ground and life had taken him as well. Gwen was the only surviving member of his team, but by now she would be dealing with a newborn and a demanding husband. There were rumours that Gwen was trying to shift through the rubble of the Hub and form another Torchwood in the ruins of the outpost where they were hiding during the invasion of the 456. It made Jack proud, and he felt a little brighter with how much he had moulded Gwen over the years. She was no longer upholding the law like the Police Woman she once was; she was determined to protect the Earth no matter the cost.

But there was no point going back to Cardiff just to see another team destroyed under his leadership. Jack himself believed that he was a curse, killing everything he touched. Even the Doctor was ridden with a dangerous jealousy that much he picked up during the Dalek invasion. There was something else that the Doctor refused to tell him, a flicker of hope in those ancient eyes upon his young face. Something that made Jack feel that perhaps his accidental immortality was a gift after all.

Jack came to Australia as a sort of escape when his Vortex Manipulator had once again died out. The Doctor was right about that one, too. He recalled the amount of times the Doctor tried to disable his beloved Time Agency wrist strap and Jack had always been able to fix it, becoming used to how the Doctor's sonic screwdriver worked.

Jack wasn't technically reading the newspaper, he was hoping it would be a good distraction from the thoughts that plagued his mind. Yet, something glistened at the corner of his eye and he looked up from the column allowing patrons of public transport to express their views when his eyes spotted the cause of the glistening in the corner of his eye and it turned out to be something darting into existence and then flashing out of existence once more. He rose to his feet out of curiosity, letting the paper fall to the ground and then Jack picked it up as his next move was to put it in the rubbish bin nearby. Clearly that was a rift spike, which meant clearly the Torchwood Hub must be located somewhere in the city. Another thing that alerted him was the fact that if these rift spikes was dangerously common; another dangerous object would have escaped from its clutches.

Captain John Hart. The mere delicious mockery of Jack's own name, the man had amusingly been in rehab for sex, drugs, booze and murder. A small smile crossed his lips at the thought of seeing John again, the twisted sod did try to kill Jack's team and eventually attempted to murder Jack himself. Ah, the look of surprise on John's face when Jack returned from the dead. No doubt John did escape from the rift again, for Jack had seen him at Ianto's funeral, the pair lingering in the back to avoid confrontation by Ianto's sister. Eye candy, John had called him. It was always a competition between Jack and John, somehow John would always manage to snatch a love interest right under Jack's nose, and Jack would do the same. Yet, when John had kidnapped Grey and used him as a way to get to Jack – their already awkward relationship changed dangerously. Jack was saving a broken nose for John the next time he saw him instead of a decent grope.

Jack wandered to the area where he last saw the creature zipping from the rift, the energy trembling in his fingertips as he walked. Ahead of him he saw a rowdy drunken crowd consisting of five females and a pair of men. Jack shook his head, recalling his roguish years and the first time Emily and Alice saw him – lying in a drunken heap out the back of a Cardiff bar smelling of animal manure. To be honest, he had them to thank for rebuilding his life and giving him hope of finding the Doctor again. If he hadn't been found by them and recruited to Torchwood, his journey to find the Doctor would have been a lot more difficult without the aid of the Rift's energy and the TARDIS's subsequent need to recharge. The rowdy crowd were waiting for a Maxi Taxi, and Jack kept a close eye on them. They didn't appear to be violent, just loud and annoying like most under the influence.

He stretched as he walked past the group and his hands dropped into his pockets as one of the girls threw him a wave.

"Hey handsome, fancy a party?" She asked him with a slur and staggering onto her friend to the left. The both ended up laughing loudly, stoping each other from falling over completely. "Always room for one more". She looked rather curvy and seemed to be a bit taller than most women Jack had known. Her blonde hair was pulled back in a messy pony tail, obviously hinting it had been let out during the night and she had picked up a rogue rubber band to tie it back. Unlike the others who were smoking and clashing half drunken beer bottles, she seemed the most sober out of the group. Like a strange enzyme in her body was enabling her to control her alcohol better than most.

Jack looked over the woman in question and shrugged his shoulders. "I'm a bit pre occupied at the moment, thanks for the offer". The accent that came from Jack caused the girls to look rather limp. He noticed their reaction, and figured it would be best to keep on walking.

"Wait... you're American?" The woman asked him, wandering away from the group now and twirling a strand of blonde hair between her fingers. "Hmm... such a nice coat, too", her fingers drifted down his arm as she caught up with his walking pace.

Jack turned roughly, clearly uninterested at her advances. He was still grieving over the death of Ianto and the last thing he needed was some drunken woman throwing herself at his feet. His old self would have appreciated such an offer, but not this time. He raised his index finger and clenched his jaw, then dropped his hand with a sigh. "Your taxi is here". He turned slowly to make an indication that he was not interested in her. Well of course he wasn't – she appeared to be nineteen years old, Jack himself forgetting the legal age was eighteen. Yet she didn't leave his side, in fact her energy seemed to be clinging onto him like a mouldy bathroom mat in a rundown hotel. He met her eyes, ready for her mental challenge but he seemed to only make things worse between them.

She gazed at him with a frown, her hazel eyes flickering. "There's been some funny things happening, aliens, they say. My mother disappeared about three months ago, hasn't been seen anywhere since. She's forever updating her Facebook status, texting me, but nothing lately. Sorry to bother you but there's something... something about you I can't understand. I think you can help me". This time it wasn't the alcohol talking, Jack could tell from her tone. She had clearly taken up the habit after the disappearance of her mother and no doubt a probable psychic ability. Something to numb the voices, he'd seen it happen too many times. Frowning a little for her misfortune, Jack whispered the name of the hotel he was staying in upon her right ear.

"Ask for Jack", he began, standing back. Her perfume was quite strong and it reminded him of an exotic encounter with a beautiful human woman on a planet at the edge of the Universe. "If you remember by the morning, I'll do my best to help you". He was tempted to ask how she knew that he could help her. Perhaps he was meant to be in Australia after all, the country at the bottom of the world lying somewhat forgotten by most of the superpowers after the Second World War. It would have only been a matter of time before the trapped rift had escaped and would no doubt cause mayhem on the so called quiet country. She caught his words and nodded, glancing to the group and frowning once more.

"He's back, by the way, just thought I should tell you". She shrugged her shoulders, stumbled back to the group and pushed her way into the taxi taking up a seat at the rear. Her friend next to her vomited, Jack catching the retching motion as the blonde teen offered a source of comfort. The others were laughing, and he stared at the Taxi for a good few minutes as it quickly drifted out of sight into the early morning air.

"He's back?" Jack said to himself. It could only mean one thing. His initial thoughts about John were becoming clearer, and if the Australian Government were looking for him to start a new team – Jack was already one step ahead. If this alcoholic psychic could prove herself, she could help him find new members, track down John and the new team could work on a way to control the rift completely. Jack stood a little taller as he could tell dawn was carefully approaching. For a brief moment in time he could have sworn he saw Ianto, Tosh and Owen nodding approvingly for his decision to start an Australian team in the distance.

The alarm on Simone's iPhone taunted her from a brief deep sleep following her earlier play with John. He was right, for a man with so many secrets he sure knew how to relax her. Simone sighed and sat up, looking over John to the window on the left. She hated early morning starts during winter – the sun wasn't even up and she'd had to struggle to find decent winter gear for it had been Brisbane's coldest winter on record the last few mornings. She ran her fingers through her hair and got out of bed, gently walking to the wardrobe where she then fished through an assortment of clothing until she found her uniform. Simone Anderson worked at one of the busy city Cafe's as an assistant manager but she preferred to get up early so most of the preparation was out of the way involving their cakes, pastries, pies and sandwiches. She forgot to turn the alarm off and it rang once again, hearing John grunt from his deep sleep she was nearly tempted to throw it at him. He had a horrible way of just knowing how to mock her, but all in all the pair had a fairly stable relationship.

As Simone gathered her uniform and underwear she wandered out of the bedroom and into the bathroom. She switched on the light, closing the door and dumped her clothes onto the floor. She stepped into the shower and let the warm water fall delicately over her body as another vision flashed past her closed eyes. The man she had been dreaming about was caressing her naked form as they lay in bed together. His hands were much softer than John's, and his kisses sent ripples of pleasure down the nerves in her body. Simone snapped her eyes open to find that she had fallen onto the floor of the shower, water quickly rising around her because she had blocked the drain with her elbow. She could hear John banging on the door, calling her name, no doubt the fall had caused a crash for the shampoo and conditioner tray was sprawled around her. Simone groaned, tasting blood in her mouth. She must have hit her jaw pretty hard. Slowly she got to her trembling feet and turned the water off. She got out of the shower and picked her towel off the railing and hurried to open the door before John would be tempted to break it down.

He stared at her in a fit of worry, unusual for him. "What the hell happened?" He then masked his concern with his usual sarcastic tone. "Were you pleasuring yourself without me?"

Simone's pale blue eyes narrowed as she gripped the towel tighter around her breasts. Her blonde hair was dripping past her shoulders, and her lip was beginning to swell. "They're getting worse, no – I am not calling in sick to work. We're low on staff as it is". She twitched as he touched her lip. "They've never been this strong, I... I can't make sense of it, I could feel him touching me this time".

John struggled to reason with Simone's fear. Her eyes were wide with confused emotions. He looked to the fallen bathroom necessities in the bottom of the shower and soon realised that Simone's case was rather serious. "I'll see you at lunch, then". He turned to leave. "What did you say that man's name was again?"

Simone thought for a moment. The name flashed into her mind and she said it with a fearful tone. "Jack. I.. think... Jack Harkness".

The brief flicker of humanity in John Hart soon left him at the mention of his rival's name. He smiled a dark undertone as he looked over his shoulder at Simone. This was getting interesting; perhaps there was a reason after all why John found her to be so attractive. "If you have another vision... tell him that John is watching". His tone left Simone feeling even more confused amongst the midst of her betraying emotions toward the man she loved.

Did John mean what he said? Simone pondered the thought as she dressed.

John in the meantime was sitting in the lounge, watching early morning cartoons on a children's Foxtel channel. Being born in the fifty-first Century and then starting to slowly realise why his rival enjoyed living on such a world, watching such channels was also helping John understand how these Earth children dealt with life on a daily basis. He knew about the 456 invasion, the way those creatures managed to control the open mind of the millions of Earth children with just a simple frequency. As time went on, he was becoming aware that the veil between reality and the spiritual realms was slowly breaking apart – hence the recent spikes in the rift and not to mention Simone's dreams becoming more vivid. Another female he had befriended, Desiree, a nineteen year old alcoholic who had an incredible psychic ability would be the one he hoped to help Simone with her problem. All this time he had known Simone, she seemed... incredibly familiar. The fact that she dreamt about Jack in such erotic positions meant only one thing. Simone was obviously in a Torchwood team with Jack, and John started to wonder which one.

John hadn't told Simone any of this. He was talented when it came to keeping his secrets and merely teasing her with the way he touched her and protected her. Simone was different from any woman or man he had been with. He was honestly starting to question himself if he loved her and she wasn't just a dirty romp on the side as an escape from his addictive past. Simone seemed to have her questions, though. Her eyes were trying to find his soul, peel him back like a ripe banana and chew on the mash within his being. Simone was good – he had to admit. For a woman who was struggling with dangerous dreams, she had tamed him. A little bit. Not too much, but just a little bit. Hell, he was amused with himself the other day how he figured out to work the washing machine. John was worried about the thought of becoming a domesticated human male, but if Jack was involved with Simone in the past he was determined to find out the why's and how's. If push came to shove, Simone was his. There was no doubt about it. The problem was... what would happen if she met Jack? Would she remember him?

John wouldn't let that happen.

"I might be a little late coming home", Simone said as she entered the lounge room, pinning her hair up with bobby pins "One of the afternoon girls called in sick".

"Let me guess", John began, turning to see Simone in her partly dressed uniform. It lacked the name badge and shoes, and he assumed she would be putting them on shortly. "Desiree?"

Simone nodded with a sigh. "John, I know you think she's all right but... if she keeps doing this I'm going to have to let her go". She frowned. "Hold on, who did you say that psychic friend of yours was?"

John said nothing. He merely eyed Simone, and she picked up on it pretty quickly.

"Oh, God. All right, I'll give her one more chance..." She watched as John got to his feet and drew her into a slight embrace. He lightly touched her lip with his. "...now people are going to think I was beaten up". She laughed gently.

"I'll still see you at lunch. Remember what I said, all right?" He let her leave his arms. As she disappeared into the bedroom, John found his red jacket with whale bones pinned across the chest. With Simone at work, he could spend the morning locating Jack. No doubt his rival was close by, he could feel it. Searching around the house he found his favourite pair of pants and boots, after putting them on, he ensured Simone was still busy readying herself. In the hallway was a portrait hanging on the right hand wall where underneath was a brown antique table. It was a small table with four legs, elegantly shaped. Apparently it had been in Simone's family for centuries. Atop of that was a bronze vase – another family heirloom. The vase was empty, and as John looked at the portrait which was ironically a painting of Cardiff in the 1900's, he crouched to the ground. Feeling around the carpet underneath the table, he found a loose thread and yanked it upright. Underneath was a floorboard and John fiddled with it until it came loose. Quickly he pulled out a silver container which had gathered dust. He could hear Simone nearby. He worked just as quickly to put everything back into order as he hid the container under his jacket and Simone approached him from behind. He could feel she was eyeing him curiously.

"See you..." She said, waved, and wandered to the front door. She unlocked the large wooden door, then the screen door, and closed both after her.

John took the silver container from underneath his jacket and opened it. Inside was his weapon collection, recalling the time he first stepped into Torchwood and Jack made him remove his beloved weapons. Such a violent assortment, various pistols, knives, fist weapons – in fact it slightly turned him on at the thought of what Simone would think if she knew he had these hidden under their house. He started to strap them to his body, one by one, in the special holsters he had created, all the while thinking about Jack. Was there another reason for him to be in this country despite the obvious fact that Brisbane had a rift? Jack wasn't stupid, John hated to admit that truthful fact. But if John's assumptions were correct then he had a fair idea that Simone was a reincarnated lover of Captain Jack Harkness. It inwardly made John's blood boil, the jealousy was seeping through his pores like a teenager's acne rising to the surface. Hmm. How amusing, he thought to himself. Perhaps Simone was worthwhile after all. As he put on his old wrist strap, he wandered to the bedroom. He glanced at the messed up bed where he had previously made love to Simone not too long ago. Grinning at his reflection as he flexed, he appeared to be highly pleased with himself. "You may not be able to die, friend, but I'll ensure you'll want to once I'm through with you".


	3. Chapter 3

The customer crowd had been rather quiet with the opening of a more popular coffee shop a few stores down. Simone glanced at the clock on the register screen, frowning, because it was just half past eight. Without Desiree, she would be required to stay back until eight that night. It was going to be a long day. She returned to her duty of bagging brownies, taping the bag with a seal of the cafe's logo. She placed them neatly on a white tray and passed it over the counter, pushing aside a display of mints for those fearful of coffee breath. She then set the tray down, looking up to be at chest height with a man, whose appearance startled her and she took a brief step back. He wore a familiar looking blue military coat, Simone recognising the rank of Captain on his shoulders from her days in the Airforce Cadets. His face was a frightening resemblance to the man in her dream, his blonde hair slightly parted and blue eyes telling a story of pain and secrets. Eventually, Simone found her voice. "Can I help you?" Perhaps it was just coincidence. Her eyes followed his hand as he picked up a freshly packed brownie and set it on the counter with a charming smile.

"Simone, right?" He began, causing her more confusion but she later noticed he was looking at her name tag and she childishly giggled. "Are you on your own today?" Jack was trying to make polite conversation, after not having a coffee for a good few days. For him, it was irony, but Simone's eyes looked incredibly familiar.

She nodded as she rang up the brownie and passed Jack a napkin from under the counter. "We've been a little short staffed; business hasn't been that great lately". She looked at his face again and smiled, chuckling to herself for a moment. "Call me nutty, but you feel so familiar to me". Like most Australians, she found his accent to be rather flattering and easy to understand.

Jack took his wallet from his back pocket and passed a small note to Simone as she changed it and placed the coins in his hand. He was thinking about what she said, how he had looked familiar to her. The pair were in silence for a moment when another customer entered the shop, and Jack's head turned.

"Hello, kitten", the voice spoke and much to Simone's surprise it was John. "Fancy seeing you here".

Jack was stunned, he looked between Simone and John for judging by Simone's surprise at John's comment it was apparent that the pair knew each other. His face fell to that of a more serious tone and he pocketed his wallet along with his brownie. "I take it you didn't want this brownie". Jack crossed his arms and noticed how quiet Simone had become, for the look on John's face was furious. "Care to explain why you're here, John? I didn't think my world gave you any interest".

John slowly approached Jack and brushed him suggestively with his shoulder as he picked up a wrapped brownie and started to unwrap it, chewing deeply into the cake and swallowing with a grin. "As a matter of fact, I did want that brownie. But I suggest you better back away from the counter", John waved his hands in Jack's chest, flecks of the cake spattering onto Jack's clothing. "Go on, bugger off. I know I can't kill you so I'm not going to try".

Simone looked flustered as the pair battled wits before her, and she was half tempted to press the panic alarm in the event Jack caused a scene. Her fingers were hovering on the button but then she drew back, for Jack felt to her that he was no threat. "John... do you know this man?" She asked, quietly, looking between the pair as John finished his brownie.

"Know him?" John laughed shortly. "Darling. I screwed him. We... were partners. I'm afraid I haven't been entirely honest with you". He noticed Simone's face turn white at the thought of the pair being lovers. "Oh, don't worry. We are very much over". He threw Jack a dark glare. "Do you want to tell the story, Jack, or should I save you the trouble?" John scrunched up the plastic wrapper and threw it in Jack's face with a slight grin. "Don't worry, Simone. You won't need to call the police on this one". He glanced to his lover and noticed how pale she had become. He knew Simone couldn't handle confrontation well, the woman being too sensitive for her own good. At this time of the morning, the cafe was usually full so John was thankful that another cafe had opened a few stores down diverting customer traffic. The last thing he wanted was a scene to unfold where Jack died and later came back to life, drawing unnecessary media attention to Simone being a witness. Right now, though, he was inwardly amused with himself when suddenly Jack raised his clenched fist, drawn so tightly into his palm that his nails were digging into his skin. With full force he made contact with John's nose, sending the man backward and into a setting of tables and chairs. Simone looked on, horrified.

John looked up, blood pouring from his nose but by the time his eyes regained focus, Jack had left the cafe. Simone however was busy dabbing at his wound, mumbling to herself and stroking his cheek fondly. "Just a flesh wound", he promised her. "My ego... however..." John sniffed deeply, feeling his own blood trickle down the back of his throat. "I'll explain everything", he said, noticing she was now trembling and tears were being forced back for the sake of his wellbeing. "Yes. I did sleep with another man. Surprised? Of course you would be. I'm only going to tell you now, sweetheart, things are going to get worse from here on in". He spoke with sniffs in between, sounding like he had a bad cold. "It's only a broken nose! I've had worse", he batted away Simone's tending hands as she sat back on her folded knees and stared at him. "You've got a customer". He grunted, but as soon as the customer looked at the mess in the cafe, he blinked and quickly walked out following Simone's glare.

"Who are you, John?" Simone asked him gently, her eyes darting as she looked into his. "I've been attracted to your mysterious nature for so long but now I... I feel as if I can't trust you". She rose to her feet and looked down at her uniform with a sigh. Blood from John's broken nose had stained it. "Looks like I'm going to have to close up early. I'll blame it on a family emergency". She looked at him with a small smile. "All right... I'll take you to the hospital..." She slowly got to her feet but John grabbed her wrist rather suddenly.

"No", he said, firmly. "Taking me to a hospital will only cause further attention". He paused, and realised she looked even more confused than before. "I'm not alien. Well, not exactly. I'm from the future. The fifty-first Century, in fact. That guy who just hit me?" He waited until Simone seemed ready for his words. "Happens to be the very man you've been dreaming about. Why, I don't know. There's nothing fantastic about Jack Harkness", he uttered a short laugh and sniffed back some dry blood sitting at the base of his nostrils. "The fact is, Jack is from the same time as I am. We're Time Travellers".

Simone's mind was racing. To John, this seemed like some sort of cruel ego booster. To Simone, her heart was breaking in front of her as John revealed parts of himself she only fantasised about. Simone often felt that he was from a different time – and they were somehow drawn together based on fate. But if this Jack and John were lovers, it was too much for Simone to bear. She didn't understand why Jack was so familiar to her, not only from the dream itself but now that he was here in the flesh it felt as if John was using her as a tool to forget about Jack. She then rubbed her hands against her hips, shaking her head and putting her hands to the side of her head. She turned her back on John, and let her fingers run through her hair before letting her shoulders slump and her hands fell back to her side. She turned again to face him, as he sat there in silence. "Am I a rebound?" She asked him, softly. Right now, she didn't care that the man she loved was from a different time and he was clearly bi-sexual. All she wanted to know was if she happened to be a rebound, an excuse, really.

John swallowed her words as he dabbed at his nose. At least it had stopped bleeding but the pain was still great. "You're not a fucking rebound". He snapped, frustrated at himself for allowing Jack to find him like this, emotionally involved with a twenty first century woman. He noticed Simone twitch at his use of that word and he rolled his eyes. "If you were a rebound, I would have left you high and wet from the first time we slept together". He said this with a tone Simone was not familiar with. He watched as she stepped back slowly, her hands finding the bench and she pressed herself against it.

Simone was slowly regretting the decision she was about to make, but this whole scenario was becoming much too weird for her liking. A man she had dreamt about was now in reality, her lover was admitting he was not from this time and clearly was making her question if he happened to be genuine or not. She struggled to find the words as she swallowed deeply and then stood firmly. "I want you to leave my apartment", she began, tears beginning to form and a sniffle as well. "As soon as possible. John... you're scaring me. I don't understand what is happening right now, and to be honest I think it will be better for the both of us if you leave me alone". Clearly her voice was shaking as she said these words. She didn't want to admit that she was now terrified of him, and as he got to his feet to give her a source of comfort she saw the butt of a pistol sticking out from under his jacket. "Stay back", she said, outstretching her hands. "Just... stay back..." With a sob, Simone hurried behind the counter once more where she then grabbed her bag, took her keys from the small pocket within and left the cafe in tears.

"Well", John said to himself, as he adjusted his jacket and clicked his nose back into place with a grunt. "That didn't go as well as I expected". He thought Simone would have been more understanding, but she was clearly frightened. He knew she wouldn't throw him out otherwise; perhaps it was the idea of being from the future. Perhaps it was Jack staring her in the face after the man had tormented her in her dreams for so long. As he exited the cafe, closing the doors behind him, John slowly wandered from the mouth of the cafe into the open street, turning right he headed toward the entrance to Queen Street, which was the direction he felt Jack wander off to. He wanted answers, and he was going to get them.


	4. Chapter 4

Desiree Meyers was curled up amongst the folds of her blankets, clutching at them as if it were her own self pity. She struggled to contain the fact that she had once again called in sick to work with no thanks to a late night out on the town with her friends. Were they even her friends? She wasn't sure. The Nineteen year old was entirely too trusting for her own good – a portable door mat some had called her. She dragged herself into many difficult situations, aiming to make everyone happy but when it came to making herself happy... no one wanted an input and instead they thrived on making her feel worse about herself and continued to use her. Her drinking was getting out of hand; she'd intake a full litre of rum in twelve hours, sleep, and then drink again the next morning or on her days off. She drew herself into a little ball, frowning at her reflection in the mirrors of her wardrobe. She saw something else staring back at her though and Desiree jumped to her feet with a start, seeing her reflection the second time around. Sighing, Desiree suddenly remembered what had happened in the early hours of that morning, in her drunken state meeting a man who promised to help her, regarding the disappearance of her mother. She heard the name of the hotel roll around in the base of her mind, and was determined to dress. Although she did not feel well enough to work, she was well enough to inspect in regards to what this man was all about.

She pulled on a pair of jeans, hugging her curvy figure and a white turtleneck jumper. She threw on a thick red coat, running a brush through her frizzy blonde hair and then pulled on a pair of joggers. The name of the hotel was still there, clearly she was meant to meet this man called Jack.

Desiree approached the hotel with a stale gulp, which she soon swallowed. Her old hang bag carrying unnecessary receipts and old make up hung over her right shoulder as she came to the front doors. She stepped onto the rubber mat as the doors opened, and she slowly wandered to the receptionist at the front counter. The receptionist was on the phone, her earpiece visible and her mouth clearly moving as she was dealing with a customer complaint. She answered with a roll of her eyes but with a falsified smile and a nod of her head.

"Can I help you?" The woman asked, a fair bit older than Desiree as the younger woman swallowed once more.

"Um, I'm supposed to meet someone here..." Desiree shifted on the spot, clasping to her hand bag and looking even more nervous. "His name was Jack?" Desiree watched quietly as the receptionist typed in the name and shook her head gently. "I'm sorry to bother you". Desiree said gently with a nervous shrug.

"Honey, there are at least ten Jacks staying in this motel alone. Do you have any idea what he looked like? Perhaps we can check the cameras", the woman looked her over and frowned. "I wouldn't want to leave you high and dry feeling like a fool. If they were trying to scam you – my best advice is to report it to the police, especially if he didn't leave a last name". The receptionist seemed quite concerned for Desiree's wellbeing. "Are you all right?"

Desiree was glued to the spot, still clutching her hand bag and her eyes were staring off into the distance beyond the receptionist's shoulder and following Desiree's wild eyes the receptionist turned in an attempt to source the sight of vision. "N... no... I..." Desiree stumbled backward, frightened by the creature which had appeared behind the receptionist and grabbed her by the throat. "No! Leave her alone! She's not the one you're looking for!" Desiree shouted, dropping her handbag to the floor and gripping at her hair in frustration for the receptionist whose name appeared to be Emily. "Leave her alone!" She kept on screaming as the receptionist pressed the duress alarm under the counter but was still struggling for breath. Desiree panicked, and ran out of the hotel, her eyes blurred fearing that the creature would be after her next. But her body slammed into a tall broad figure, the pair falling to the ground, Desiree on top of him. "She... she..." Desiree stammered, getting to her feet and suddenly recognised the face. "It's you!"

Jack had been thrown off his feet before when it came to women, and as he got to his feet brushing himself off he could see Desiree looking rather startled. He wondered what could have frightened her so much, and he then heard a scream coming from the hotel. "Stay right there, don't move", Jack pulled his pistol clear from the tan coloured holster underneath his jacket and he made his way back to the hotel. He didn't like the idea of leaving Desiree on her own, the girl had enough problems as it was. He entered the lobby and his eyes scanned the area smoothly, until they fell upon the main desk. It was covered in blood, a beating heart situated in the middle of the paperwork on the bloody counter. Jack drew his hand to his face with the smell, but by now the local police had arrived and were shouting at him to put down his weapon.

"It's all right!" Jack said, raising his hands at the various assortment of male officers before him. "Torchwood". He finished with a satisfied smile. "Please tell me you have heard of Torchwood?" He looked up to the officer in charge who was examining behind the counter and stepped back rather startled. The officers were too stunned at the horrific crime scene to care about Jack swiftly making his way behind the counter and crouched down with a frown, still clasping his pistol tightly but inwardly was horrified at the sight before him. He had seen a death like this once before. The throat ripped open, heart removed, body lacking a scrap of clothing.

"Oh Emily... not you too". He said softly. He looked up at the officer in charge who was rather pale in the face, struggling to make sense of the scene before him. "If my assumptions are correct, this thing won't stop until it has her". He got to his feet and pocketed his weapon, putting a hand on the officer's shoulder. "Do yourself a favour. Ask your higher ups about me, about Torchwood. I'll stop it before it does kill again".

Senior Constable Paul Sanderson shook his head in dismay toward Jack. "Listen, buddy. Do you have any idea how many times people have flashed false credentials in my face, only to make themselves look like they have a bigger ego and mess around with the crime scene? Some have gone so far as to steal evidence from the locker, when they were the ones who masterminded the whole murderous plot in the first place. In my right mind I should be tempted to arrest you, but a part of me isn't going to", he spoke softly, knowing how to reason with people very well. Paul wasn't one to take things lying down, and his head turned to see Desiree standing in the doorway looking just as shocked as the other officers. "Miss, I'm sorry, this hotel is closed..."

"Oh, no", Jack said with a small grin. "She's with me. Torchwood. Go on, I dare you to Google". He felt the energy change in the air when he made Desiree feel like part of the team. More importantly, he was concerned as to why this was happening. Another murder in the same fashion that Alice was killed, this time, taking out an innocent hotel receptionist, who ironically had the same first name as his previous commander in chief. He heard more sirens outside as the Ambulance was rolling to a halt in front of the doors, and Desiree stepped out of the way as a man and a woman brought in a stretcher.

Paul glanced at Jack, and left the hotel as he made a call back to the office on the radio sitting on his shoulder. His first question was related to Jack's claim that he was part of a Government organisation called Torchwood – or well Paul assumed it was a Government organisation. But he'd never heard of it before, "Are you sure you can't find anything? Use Mitch's clearance..." Paul paused as he looked back through the open doors at Jack and the young woman who was now by Jack's side. The pair was talking quietly as the paramedics struggled to contain their stomachs during the process of picking up the remains of Emily the Receptionist. By now, office works had pooled onto the streets and were curiously watching the scene unfold before them. He pressed the button again on his radio and made the call to bring in further back up and forensics. As he was distracted by waiting for a response by head office, he didn't see Jack and Desiree slip through the front doors of the hotel and disappearing into the crowd. By the time he looked back to check on his two suspects, he made a sharp call to be on the lookout for attempted murders.

Jack was gripping onto Desiree's hand firmly as the pair ran through Queen Street, passing busy workers as they were filling the street to enjoy a mid morning snack. Jack only knew that local police officers wouldn't have any information on Torchwood, and the last thing he wanted was to be behind bars in the local watch house with a girl he had dragged into this mess. Her hand was clammy against his and she stopped running, Jack stopped to turn to face her. Desiree was breathing rather heavily and bent over at the waist. He frowned.

"I should have left you alone last night". His tone was rather apologetic. Desiree was young, perhaps one of the youngest to embrace the Torchwood essence. A few people brushed past him as workers were returning to the office after the mid-morning break. Desiree swallowed and stood to full height and she ran her fingers through her messy blonde hair. "Hangover?" Jack wondered, and smirked. "Oh to be in your shoes; my youth and I did not get along very well". He continued to watch Desiree as she regained her composure. "Did you see anything in the hotel?"

Desiree was still struggling to breathe, having suffering from asthma and only recently didn't find the need to rely on her puffer. But right now she did need it and mentally cursed herself for leaving it at home in her nightwear drawer. She could briefly make out what Jack was saying to her apologising for their meeting last night for one. She didn't remember much about last night or what she said to Jack. Music filtered through the wind as it blustered between them with a bitterness of the cold air alongside the violent lyrics of the tune. Turning her head slightly, she saw that they directly opposite HMV. Desiree straightened as Jack commented about his wild youth. She sniffed and noticed a strange aura around him, the colours were changing almost hinting that he wasn't being very honest with himself.

"Don't lie", Desiree scolded with a shake of her head. "You weren't wild on purpose. You were regretting leaving Grey behind". Sometimes she even amazed herself with her predictions and general ability to pick up even the darkest of secrets around people. Jack, especially, was full of them. He was struggling to hide them, but Desiree managed to see them. It was a flaw on his behalf, and she would have to show him how to hide his feelings better. She thought for a moment as he asked her about the hotel. Instantly her mind flashed back like a blur where she was standing before the desk, screaming at the creature to leave Emily alone. It was like Desiree herself had been possessed somehow, and she shook herself to free her aura from the negative energy of the creature in question. It was hard to describe, as she noticed Jack looking rather annoyed at her ability to pick up on his past. "It was a shadow. I didn't see how it killed. I think it's looking for a host". She heard her mobile phone ring and Desiree shifted through the various assortment of papers and weight loss pills. Her fingers clasped the thin black phone and she saw that it was flashing John's name on the screen. "Do you mind..." Desiree asked, as she answered the phone. "John?"

Jack's jaw clenched as Desiree appeared to be picking him apart with those wild eyes of hers. He didn't feel as if she were snaking through his aura on purpose, but the way she picked up on Grey was simply astounding. He had dealt with psychics in the past but none seemed to be so genuine the way Desiree explained what she felt. Clearly her tone was hinting with her own self doubts, and for a second Jack was reconsidering bringing her on board. He then thought a second later that he could use someone like her. He sighed deeply as she spoke and nodded once. "All right, you're genuine. Try to keep your thoughts to yourself the next time my aura is obvious to you okay?" He offered a small smile, giving of the sense that he wasn't annoyed by Desiree's ability. She explained the scene in the hotel and Jack folded his arms, thinking for a moment. "A shadow?" He began, trying to recall how he had witnessed Alice's death all those years ago. "Looking for a host?" If his assumptions were correct, then both John and Simone were in danger. Alice had been shot with a single bullet not issued by Torchwood, and a shadow wouldn't be capable of firing a gun unless they had possessed a body. The only one he could think of with the drive strong enough to kill was John, and as Desiree's phone rang and she mentioned the very name Jack was thinking of he immediately took the phone from Desiree's ear. "I need to see you". Jack began, and he turned away from Desiree as the conversation took place.

"So soon?" Replied John, sitting on a bench in the Southbank Parklands not too far from where he and Simone lived. "Did you miss the way my nose sounded when you broke it?" John had cleaned himself up a little, but blood still stained the whale bones pinned to his red jacket across his chest. "What are you doing with Desiree? Have you suddenly become attracted to minors?" He tutted in a way that would no doubt make Jack furious: "Ianto would not be impressed". As some female joggers went past, John situated himself on the bench to make himself feel more attractive. They completely ignored him however, and he clicked his jaw in frustration. He knew Simone wouldn't take him back. The woman took things way too seriously for her own good. A little part of him was worried about her, but he wouldn't let Jack know that he was somewhat in love.

Jack ran his hand over his head as John spoke, mocking him as per usual. "Just shut up for a minute. This is serious. Something is after you. Is Simone with you?" He felt a little panicked for the sake of John's girlfriend, John was a dangerous man and if this shadow was capable of killing two women brutally he wouldn't be surprised if the shadow controlled John to the point of murdering the woman he loved. Yet, at the mention of Ianto in such a mocking tone, Jack's cheeks turned a violent red and he was tempted to mentally break John's nose a second time. "I'm not attracted to Desiree. She has abilities, which would prove useful to the new Torchwood team. Speak about Ianto like that again and I'll do more than broke your nose a second time". He could hear John laughing on the phone and then an empty dial tone, indicating John had hung up. "Bastard", Jack muttered to himself as he looked at Desiree. "Do you know where he lives?"

Desiree could see Jack's colours changing with each second of the conversation. From that of lust, to that of anger, sadness for the loss of Ianto and now pure frustration, she nodded her head and took her phone from Jack's hands as he passed it to her. "We'll need to catch a train or a taxi. But with the Police after us..."

Jack noted her concern and thought for a moment. "Follow me". He had the intention of heading to the Parking Bay nearby King George Square and stealing a car. It would only land the pair in more trouble but he would do what it took to ensure another innocent life would not be taken. He started to head off into the direction of the parking bay, Desiree keeping close by his side. "How do you know John? He doesn't seem to be your type". Jack was being incredibly serious despite Desiree's mental protests.

The pair walked briskly through the mall, Desiree feeling a little nervous as she clutched at her bag a little tighter. "He met me at work one day and to be honest he's always felt like an older brother after my mother disappeared. John helped me develop my abilities. Of course I knew everything about him; he was pretty open and honest. Don't look at me like that; you know full well John is capable of being nice once in a while". Desiree said that as Jack gave her a sidelong 'Yeah Right' type glance and a roll of his eyes. "Although... I think he passed his drinking problem onto me somehow. He used to let me latch onto his energy. Simone often scolded him for being a bad influence on me after all I was sixteen the first time we met..." Desiree rolled her shoulders into a shrug. "...what's wrong?" She asked Jack, noticing he had stopped walking.

Jack held out his arm as the air around them suddenly felt thick. He raised his finger to his lips and looked at Desiree who nodded, and Jack rounded a corner where he sent a violent punch to a figure as it sprawled face down onto the concrete. He felt around the figure and fondled the pockets until his fingers clasped a set of keys, and Jack looked across the street where he found a parked car. Two and two seemed to click, he gestured for Desiree to follow him and the pair darted across the busy main road. Jack hit the button as the doors unlocked and slid into the driver's seat of the red Holden SS Ute, Desiree following suite and sat in the passenger's side. "Seatbelt on, great, hang on!" Jack placed the key into the ignition and the car roared to life as one of the local radio stations played a heavy rock song. He grinned to himself, glancing at Desiree who seemed even more nervous. "I've done this more than once, becomes less a thrill the fifth time around". Jack winked and pulled the car out of the parking spot, and into the busy traffic.


	5. Chapter 5

Simone was wandering up toward Central Station feeling rather worse for wear. She adjusted her handbag strap and was ignoring the surprised glances coming from curious passer-bys due to John's dried blood splattered on her chest. Right now, she really didn't care what anyone thought. She had just thrown out of her house the man she loved in fear of no longer knowing him. She didn't understand why she did it, was it the fact that he had said he had slept with the man haunting her dreams?

She fumbled around her bag until she found her go card and swiped it against a barrier to her right as the grey block rose and allowed her entry. It was now nearly lunch time, Simone spending the last couple of hours struggling to regain her composure in a public toilet. John had always been honest with her or so she thought. Things were not making much sense and she looked up at the times to see when her next train would arrive. Looking behind her she could see McDonalds was full, and a child was screaming violently as the parents ignored it and continued to eat their food. Simone frowned at the thought of just simply ignoring a screaming child. She turned to the right when she saw two uniformed police men standing before her looking rather serious.

"Simone Anderson?" The Senior Constable involved with the strange murder at the hotel asked. "Do you have a moment of your time? We just need to ask you a few questions about one of your employee's". He watched as Simone's face turned into that of shock. "I am rather concerned regarding the fact that you have blood on your shirt". He gestured to her chest and Simone raised her hands up to cover it. "We can go somewhere quiet if you like".

Simone suddenly felt all eyes were upon her. She swallowed hard, keeping John's blood on her shirt safe with her hands covering it. "W... which one?" She asked them. "Not Desiree?" Simone felt her heart sink. Desiree up until last year was under her guardianship following the disappearance of her mother. Simone felt as if she had betrayed Desiree by letting her get involved with the wrong sort of friends and alcohol.

"Please... come with us", Paul asked gently. "She could be involved in a murder case – footage shows Miss Meyers to be screaming and acting erratically, please... we will explain everything in time".

All Simone wanted to do was melt upon the floor. She wanted to disappear. She felt incredibly embarrassed, passer-bys were watching her every move as the Senior Constable interrogated her. Desiree – capable of murder? Never. "Okay". Simone said with a nod as the two Constables escorted her from Central Station and into their waiting patrol car.

Desiree was trying to call Simone. She was beginning to feel that something had happened to her friend. A lump formed in her throat and she swallowed it hard as Jack pulled the car into a loading zone with the idea that it would soon be towed. Desiree pressed the phone against her ear, biting onto a nail and frowned as it went straight to voice mail. "I can't get a hold of her. I would have thought she'd be with John".

Jack recalled the scene at the cafe as he got out of the car and looked around for any possible witnesses. There were some but they weren't paying attention. He scooted around to the other side of the car as Desiree got out and the pair started to wander down the street as soon as the door to Desiree's side was closed. She was still trying to phone Simone and Jack shook his head. "She wasn't happy with John when I left", he began to explain. "Where did you say they lived?"

Desiree dropped her phone into her handbag and looked around, squinting at the apartment blocks nearby. "Over there", she pointed to the block across the road and down a few hundred meters. "Isn't that... John?" She could see a blur of a figure strolling up the street from the direction of the Parklands. "Jack... Jack... get out of the way..." Desiree suddenly shoved Jack slightly as a bullet grazed past the pair, skimming Desiree's handbag and making contact with a brick wall and then the bullet lay on the ground. She looked up in horror for John was still approaching the pair looking rather amused.

"All right. You've got my attention, kitten. What's on your mind?" John said as he approached the pair, pocketing his gun. His eyes scanned over Desiree and smiled a little for she was crouching, her back being protected by Jack as he cuddled her. The pair looked up; both standing to full height and Jack was not impressed.

"I want you to answer me honestly. Were you in Cardiff the year that I joined Torchwood?" Jack pulled Desiree a little closer to his side, hoping that she could inform him if John was lying. It was all Jack had to say. John glanced at Desiree once more, and looked to his former lover. An awkward silence filled the air and John crossed his arms.

"How cute, you're assuming I was stalking you". John continued to watch the pair for any sudden movements. "It was just an accident on my behalf", he held up his right wrist, where the infamous Time Agency wrist strap was situated. "Just like your Doctor, I've learnt how to control this baby by using the rift". He let his arms drop by his side and rolled his shoulders. "First time I tried it, it spiked on me. So, I ended up in your time. I couldn't fix it for another three years because the objects I needed had not been invented yet. Of course, knowing you were there, I disguised myself as a peasant working on a farm. Mind you, getting the outfit wasn't easy. I seduced their eldest son, tormenting him with ideas, which caused the murder of his family. Oh, don't look at me like that, kitten. I ensured I washed my hands afterward".

Desiree found it hard to believe that he was telling the truth. In fact the colour of his aura changed to a deep excited shade of red as he was describing the way he had killed the family. "Does Simone know about this?" Desiree asked, Jack saying nothing for now in response to John's retelling.

"Funny story, actually", John began with a bragging grin as he raised his hand, pointing a finger at Jack. "He caused her to throw me out. Apparently she no longer finds me trustworthy. Oh no! I'm a murderer; I'm from a different era of time. Typical overreaction".

"Overreaction?" Jack asked, rather surprised. "Sounds like you actually cared about her". He then returned to his earlier train of thought. "What were you doing on the night that Alice Guppy died?"

"Sleeping". John said, throwing a glare to Desiree who nodded. "Barely remember a thing about that night".

"He's telling the truth", Desiree began, but then her eyes shifted past John and toward the Parklands opposite them. "What's that..." she started to wander off, Jack far too curious regarding John's intentions to notice her leaving. John said nothing as the two fifty first century men glared at each other.

"I didn't kill your whore, if that's what you're upset about. Now, if you excuse me, I have some heavy drinking to do", he brushed past Jack, hitting him with his shoulder on purpose and then kept on walking. Jack turned away, deciding to leave John for now. He then noticed Desiree had left, concerned, he saw a flicker of her red coat in the distance. As memories of Alice's death came to mind, Jack started after her but then John suddenly grabbed Jack by the wrist with a gun to his head.

Jack looked a little bemused. "I would have thought you'd learnt your lesson when you pushed me off the roof".

"I can still wound you". John started to crack his finger backward toward the trigger when with Jack's vast amount of strength he used his free arm to send a punch into John's stomach, causing the man to stagger backward and let go of his wrist. John coughed; the wind being literally knocked out of him and for a moment could feel blood pouring from his nose once more as his heart struggled to keep up with the violent lack of oxygen. Jack punched him again, this time sending John to his back and curious onlookers were calling police.

John regained his composure only briefly to tackle Jack at the waist, head butting him above the groin and sending Jack backward. John grinned to himself. "Used to be the other way around", he got to his feet with a groan and sent a kick into Jack's side, holding up his pistol as did Jack. The pair was staring at each other down the barrels of their guns, and a swift police response was swarming around them, one with Simone in the car due to the harsh response required. Simone stared at the pair in horror, getting out of the car but was quickly grabbed by one of the constables.

"Stay in the car, miss", the female constable ordered gently. "We'll take care of it".

"You don't understand", Simone argued, trying to remove herself from the constables grasp. "That's my partner", she pointed at John.

John recognised a familiar voice and cracked his neck slightly, grinning broadly at Simone. "Hello, gorgeous. Joining the party are we?"

Simone was furious at the state of John and the stranger on the grass who was now standing upright with his gun to John's temple. "Let me deal with it", she said to the constable, and not wanting to argue by the look in Simone's eyes, she let her step forward. "John, stop being ridiculous and put down the gun, it's clear that you two have issues but this isn't the way to sort it out".

Jack looked over John's shoulder at Simone as she slowly approached the pair. Neither of them were foolish enough to pull the trigger at her, Jack couldn't understand what was so familiar about Simone and he felt that John cared about her. "Maybe you should listen to her". Jack said. "I'm not putting my gun down until you do".

A bright flash of light suddenly distracted the group, coming from the middle of the parklands near the entrance to the Jacaranda archway. The constables were oddly blinded by the light and they were sent sprawling, John taking the opportunity to run as Jack and Simone took off after him.

"Is he normally like this?" Simone asked, struggling to keep up with Jack's long strides. "Clearly you've known him longer than me". Her voice hinted with jealousy.

"Desiree headed off in this direction, wait..." He put his arm out in front of Simone as the pair stopped running and John ran past a recently placed statue of Confucius. A light grabbed John and he disappeared. Jack and Simone exchanged glances. "...things just got interesting. Come on!" He grabbed Simone's hand and the pair stopped before the statue, seconds later they too were grabbed by the blinding light as Simone screamed.


	6. Chapter 6

AN – Hoping people like this story so far. Sorry if it's a bit mismatched and over the place but that's the idea of NaNo. As this is the final chapter for the first part of this series – I will not be uploading any more until I get some reviews happening! This chapter has spoilers well the whole story has spoilers from CoE and past Torchwood episodes. As a final disclaimer until the next stuff is posted – REVIEWS ARE NEEDED. Desiree is not who most expect her to be. She will get more development in further episodes. I'll also explain more about John and Simone. For rough cast ideas: Rachael Taylor (Desiree), Melissa George (Simone).

The building under the Brisbane River had not been used since the Second World War. Desiree Meyer's Grandfather, Vincent, was the former Director of Torchwood Five – Australia. It seemed to run in the Meyer's family for at the turn of the century in 1900 Vincent's Grandfather founded the organisation following dreams he was having. Desiree stood in the middle of the building, completely burnt out and smelling of stale machinery. A rat scurried over her foot and she jumped, following the direction of the rat she looked straight ahead to see a misty form of her late Grandfather who had recently passed away standing before her with a smile.

"I knew it wouldn't take you long to find it". He said, without moving his lips, for he was speaking to Desiree telepathically. "Dangerous times are upon us, Desiree. I need you in this new Torchwood team. The rift is becoming violently unstable, so far, they're only appearing to you... but soon they'll be affecting everyone". He then frowned, knowing Desiree was eager to hear about her mother. "I'm sorry to say, sweetheart. She's gone".

Desiree felt weak at the knees as her Grandfather started to speak to her. He sounded exactly as she remembered, his face contained more youth and he even had a bit more hair atop his head. She wanted to run and hug him but she felt frozen to the spot. "New Torchwood team? Grandad... what are you..." her stomach was craving food and a drink of some sort, this was becoming all too much for the nineteen year old to bear. Her senses had been pushed into overdrive, the interrogation between Jack and John being the most difficult conversation she had witnessed. As he continued to explain, things were somewhat making sense to her. It was as if he was trying to pour his memories of his team into her mind. Where he first met her grandmother, why he was too shy to come to school during the "What my Grandparents do" day, why he barely told his family what he did during the war. "How can I stop that shadow? What do you mean... mum's gone?" Tears started to well in her eyes. She was far too confused to deal with such a serious situation like this, and although she loved her Grandfather and trusted him, she just wanted to run away and hide.

Vincent frowned as he watched Desiree fall apart before him. He vowed he would not move on until he had Desiree's abilities and emotional wellbeing under control. He knew Desiree could not lead Torchwood Five just yet, he felt she would one day. He looked up as Desiree questioned him in regards to Torchwood, his face falling slightly at the memories and then gestured to a burnt out metal cabinet to the right. "Open it", he said, softly. "You won't be able to stop the shadow on your own. Your mother... she..." H e paused, still mourning the death of his daughter. Her soul had never been recovered, almost as if the shadow had been feeding on it. "...was taken by the Rift. Even I cannot find her. She is lost".

Desiree slowly approached the burnt metal cabinet, the lock appeared to be melted and fused tightly against the crack. She looked behind her when a thud filled the air, only to see Jack, John and Simone fallen amongst each other in a heap on the ground behind her. She ignored them, and started to fiddle with the cabinet.

Jack was the first to come to his senses. The bright light had caused flashes of shadows before his eyes, and he briefly saw the outline of Desiree's grandfather in the middle of the destroyed hub. Simone and John were still out for the count, so he decided to take this opportunity to get to his feet. Smoothing down his hair and coat, he spotted Desiree nearby. He wandered over to her, seeing she was struggling with the cabinet. "Want me to help you with that?" He asked, his voice startling her. To Jack, it was clear this building was the remainder of the Australian Torchwood Hub, which he had always thought was lost following its attack by an unfriendly force during the Second World War. "I don't know if you'll find anything. Everything is destroyed", he gave the area a sweep with his hand. The hub itself was pretty deep, going long under the Brisbane River and stretching several kilometres to where it would meet up with the Port of Brisbane in Milton. Jack had only been here once when it was operational, briefly meeting Desiree's grandfather whom he respected rather highly. As Desiree continued to struggle with the cabinet she sighed and stepped back, wiping her brow with the back of her hand.

"I can't get it, granddad", she was disappointed, and continued to forget that Jack was even there.

Jack wondered who she was talking to, when he felt a warm breeze brush past him and suddenly the cabinet jiggled open. He looked directly at Desiree's grandfather in surprise, Desiree herself being quick to gather what was inside before Jack could see what was in her arms. It seemed to be an old cardboard box, filled with paperwork and old photographs. A key sat on top of it, and Desiree wandered to a nearby table where she later sat on the ground and spread the documents across it. "Can I..." Jack started, but Desiree shot him a glare. He held up his hands in self defence and backed off as John and Simone started to come around.

John came to his senses next, still wounded from the fight earlier. His stomach groaned, not only was it hungry but in pain. His leg hit something solid and he turned his head slightly to see Simone still lying there. Ensuring Jack wasn't watching, he put his hand to her lips. Satisfied he could feel her warm breath upon them; John got to his feet and brushed himself off. He looked around quickly, seeing Jack and Desiree nearby. "And I thought your office was a dump", John gloated, facing Jack who threw him a glare. "I suppose whatever is trying to make me kill Simone has to be stopped, hmm? Which is why all four of us came tumbling down the rabbit hole into this festering pile of metal with nothing to show for it except a handful of love letters and photographs". He snorted, as Simone groaned and sat up. He looked down at her, and she looked up at him. They shared no words between each other, their earlier disagreement still raw in their memories.

"They're not love letters!" Desiree shouted at John who was taken aback by her sudden outburst. "Stop being so fucking melodramatic and help me!"

The three were stunned, even though Jack had known Desiree for just a few hours he never expected her to utter a curse word. Simone frowned, shaking her head, as she hit John against the leg who jumped.

"What did I do?" He said, glaring down at her and rubbing his leg where it stung. "Hmmph. Just goes to show that not everyone is pleased our little Desiree is growing up".

"Just... shut up, John!" Simone got to her feet, dusting off her uniform. "You've done nothing but complain all day. If I had my way, I'd take Jack's gun and force it down your throat if it would shut you up for just five minutes!" Her cheeks turned red with fury and then John grinned at her. He put his hands on her cheeks and pressed his lips against hers firmly.

"There's my girl! I was wondering when you'd come out of that shell of yours". As he pulled back Simone slapped him and wandered to where Desiree was sitting. The pair started to quietly sort through the paperwork, Simone's lips still tingling and her heart racing. He'd never kissed her like that before. She struggled not to look over her shoulder as he stood near Jack looking rather smug with himself.

Jack watched the two women silently as they fished through the documents, one photograph of the old team falling to the ground. His eyes wandered to it and Jack found his feet moving without request as he crouched down beside Desiree, picking it up and shaking some debris off it. He frowned as he recognised the team, and the date, which happened to be when he had visited the base for the first time. As his daughter Alice had told him, everyone else around him grew older yet he remained the same. Hair styles changed, but he did not.

"Granddad said you were always one of a kind", Desiree said suddenly, sitting back on her folded legs which were tucked neatly under her backside. She picked up a letter, which had not been opened in several years, yet it was addressed to her. "This... just got strange..."

Simone stood to full height as she put a comforting hand on Desiree and noticed the limp photograph Jack was holding. Instantly her eyes fell to the date and she stared at the man, the impossible man before her. He had been haunting her dreams, and now her feelings had been confirmed.

"My God", she said with a single breath. "It's impossible... that's you, surely it couldn't have been photoshopped I mean that cabinet was sealed shut, I mean the date! My dreams! Who are you? You clearly look human but yet, your eyes are so old",

John opened his mouth to talk but Simone raised an index finger at him.

"All right", Jack began, realising that the confusion had gone on long enough. Desiree looked up from her sorting and it seemed that her grandfather's energy had left the hub. "Let me explain. John, I want you to be quiet. Any word from you and there will be a bullet waiting, understand?" Once his rival nodded, the women listened silently as well. "John and I are from the fifty-first Century, and yes... we're not human. Well, we are human, but we are from another planet. Don't worry – there's nothing extra added to us that you are not used to". He cracked a grin, but neither of the women seemed impressed at his joke attempt. "Our planet was invaded by an alien race and I lost my brother in the attack. A few years later, I met John and we joined a group called the Time Agency. Con artists, we were. Snagging alien technology, money, men, women... whatever we could get our hands on. I ended up stealing a space ship and transported myself back in your time during the Second World War, where I stole the alias Captain Jack Harkness, and decided to start a new life here because I could not get the ship to function properly". He took a moment to pause as the memories returned, John smirking to himself, trying hard not to say anything at all as the two women listened. Simone seemed to be holding Desiree protectively. "That was where I met a man called the Doctor and his companion, Rose Tyler. Well, she actually somehow fell onto my ship after I caught her dangling from a rope in the middle of the Blitz... funny story..." He stopped once again once he realised the others did not find it amusing. "The Doctor is alien. You'll see his name popped up through history. He can change his face, but is virtually immortal like myself. I'll explain how that happened soon. I decided to sneak onto the Doctor's ship called the TARDIS – a space ship like the one I had but much more... worthy, I guess you could call it that. I'd never met a man like the Doctor before in all my life. We ended up stranded several years into the future on a roaming satellite around the Earth called Satellite Five, where it would broadcast reality shows day in and day out. The three of us were separated, and we later found each other only to be attacked by a race called the Daleks, a mortal enemy of the Doctor".

Desiree looked rather frightened and Simone did her best to comfort her. But it wasn't Jack's honesty that was frightening her. The Shadow was looming in the distance, waiting for the right moment to strike.

"The Doctor sent Rose back to her time with the TARDIS, leaving he and myself to help create a weapon capable of destroying the Daleks. The humans on the satellite and I formed a militia against them, unaware that Rose back home was working on a way to bring the TARDIS back to the Doctor because she could not bear the thought of losing him. Rose ripped the grate off, which sealed in the Time Vortex and stared into it, allowing it to take over her for a few brief moments. Normal humans would die from such an event but Rose did not. She controlled the TARDIS to return to Satellite Five where she found a stunned Doctor. Even the Doctor's own race had its fair share of misfortunes when it came to looking into the Vortex of Time, but that is another story. So, anyway, there I was, facing off between three Daleks when one suddenly shot me. It's a lethal shot, much like the killing curse from Harry Potter if you want a brief understanding on how powerful they are. I was about to enter the other side when a sudden bright light grabbed me and pulled me back to life", Jack did his best to keep himself together as he recalled the moment where he could no longer die. "I then hitched a ride on a cruiser, where I fixed my Vortex Manipulator and it allowed me to return to a more friendly time back on Earth. Unfortunately, it threw me back to the late 1800's and I was unable to repair it. I still did not know why I could not die because the Doctor and Rose had long gone by the time I came back around. It turned out that I ended up in Cardiff, and two women had somehow learnt about my drunken exploits of trying to kill myself in many killable ways – if that's how you'd like me to describe it, but I could not die". His eyes fell upon Simone. "These two women were from an organisation called Torchwood. I'll explain about that later as well. Alice and Emily – what a pair".

Simone swallowed hard. "You're saying that you're technically over a hundred years old?"

"Pretty much. You see, I couldn't travel in time any more after this was destroyed", he held up his wrist strap. "So, after consulting a psychic and wondering if it was worth it... she told me I wouldn't see the Doctor again for another hundred years. I decided to play along with these women and see what they were all about, only to fall in love with one of them and her life was taken a week later".

Desiree shook her head, trying not to believe Jack's story. But every word of it was true, and she suddenly felt Simone shift away from her. "It was you", Desiree said. "No wonder you've been dreaming about him!"

"I don't believe you". Simone snapped to her young friend. "This... none of this is making any sense".

John couldn't take it any longer. He had to say something. "Simone. If you want to listen to anyone, listen to me. Everything he is saying is the truth. It's all in those files over there. You were one of the women responsible for finding Jack. Without Jack, there would have been no Torchwood. That's how I see it anyway", John rolled his shoulders, feeling ill that he was saying something nice about his rival.

"That's why we're all together", Desiree started. "My great-great grandfather founded Torchwood, well, this Torchwood. Simone found Jack, and with John's expertise involving the Rift... we can control it once and for all". She got to her feet and then suddenly went pale. "Behind you, John!"

"What...?" John was taken aback by her words and he suddenly screamed as he felt every nerve in his body come alight. He stood there shuddering for a good few minutes as Simone tried to run to him but Jack held her back. Once the shuddering stopped, John's eyes darkened. The whites in his eyes were no longer there, and he was staring at the three before him rather hungrily.

"Get out of here you two", Jack commanded. "There's a back entrance down the corridor and to the right, Desiree will know... run!"

"No! I'm not leaving you!" Simone shouted. "John... John... snap out of it!" Tears were streaming down her face as he focused his attention on her. "No... n...no... it couldn't have been", but Desiree had grabbed Simone's hand and the women were running as fast as their legs could take them. "He killed me!"

"It wasn't him", Desiree explained. "It was the thing within him. We need to run, we need to hide!"

Jack was pretty familiar when it came to aliens and their possessive nature. What was worse, was the fact that John was already capable of things that this alien creature seemed to handle quite well. Perhaps it was one of the reasons why the alien found John to be so alluring. "Who are you?" Jack asked, not shifting his gaze from the eyes, which possessed his rival. "Why are you after us?"

The creature inside John struggled to make it talk. Although it could operate his body well, finding a voice was something else all together. It stared at Jack hungrily with a drooling smile. "I am him". The creature spoke, its voice distorted, sounding nothing like Captain John Hart at all. Jack feared that John was lost, but something told him he wasn't. "I am him".

"Who?" Jack demanded. "Keep in mind I am more than willing to kill the host if you do not answer my questions".

"I am him". The creature said again.

"Who? What do you mean, you are him? God? The Devil? Who?"

"The Master". At last, the voice sounded normal. However, his cackle did not. Jack stared at the creature, not believing what he was hearing.

"That's impossible. We killed you". Jack said, keeping his cool. "The Doctor... banished you".

"Not all of me". Explained the Master. "There is more to Simone than you think. Her body may have changed, but she has not".

Jack tried not to question the Master mentally. He knew what the Master was capable of, but surely... Simone could not be a Time Lord?

"Hmm", The Master licked his lips. "Guess who has come to dinner".

Jack's heart skipped a beat, as his head snapped around to the right, where he heard a sound he only dreamed about hearing again.

It was the TARDIS.


	7. Chapter 7

Captain Jack Harkness had never feared for a life moreso than for the man before him. Captain John Hart would always be his rival, but truth be told, he found the circumstances pathetically amusing. Trust The Master to invade the body of one of the last Time Agents. The Master, being the rival of the Doctor, a pair of Time Lords, but however, The Master no longer held a body. Instead he was just essence, and he could have sworn that the Doctor had dealt with that during their last meeting. As the TARDIS phased into view and the door cracked open, Jack turned his head slightly to see the grinning face of his Doctor.

"I was wondering when you'd show up", mumbled Jack. "Thought you'd be leaving me to my own devices with this one", his hand gestured to the Master, whose grin broadened as the Doctor approached the group.

"Funny story, actually", replied the Tenth incarnation of the Doctor. "There I was, facing certain regeneration when suddenly – this hoodwink decided to take my place. Shoved me out of the way he did, naturally absorbing far too much radiation for his own good. Naw, now I know you saw me regenerate... yes you did", the Doctor waggled his finger with a grin at the Master. "I still have a few tricks up my sleeve. Besides! The TARDIS need refuelling anyway, and what better way to restore the energy of my beloved ship than test out this recently restored rift? I don't suppose you had anything to do with it, buddy ol' pal?" He raised a brow and put his hands in his pockets as the Master was silent. "But oh, by the way... can't let you stay in that body. I'm afraid you're going to have to leave or I'll stop you for good".

The Master remained silent as the Doctor spoke, his old rival peeling through the energy surrounding them with little concern. "Oh, don't worry. I'm going to leave this body now, but you can't catch me!" An almighty scream came from John's body as he shuddered violently, blood pouring from his ears, nose and mouth. Jack and the Doctor watched in horror as a black streamlined mist fed its way through the cracks of the roof and John's body collapsed onto the concrete floor. Jack ran to John's side, trying to find a pulse.

"Come on, you son of a bitch", Jack wiped away the excess gore from John's lips and started to press down on his chest. "You're not getting away with murder this easily". He pushed his lips firmly against John's, breathing life into his lungs. Jack was thrown back with force as John snapped up, wiping his lips and eyes struggling to focus on the men before him.

"I wasn't dead you git". John got to his feet and brushed himself down, using his shirt to wipe his face. "I appreciate the kiss. Still would've liked a bit of tongue you know, to get the excess blood from the back of my throat".

"Did he say where he was going?" The Doctor asked John, unamused at the thanks he gave Jack. The Doctor knew very little about Captain John Hart, and he could now see why the pair made such a good rivalling team.

"We had a lovely little chat, actually". John began, Jack getting to his feet and looking like he was ready to cause another broken nose. "Seems he still likes you". John swaggered to the Doctor. "I think we should keep an eye on this countries state leaders and our dear Prime Minister".

"What are you talking about?" Jack demanded. "Did he say where he was going or not?"

"I just gave you the answer, kitten. Now, where are those girls of mine..." John started off in the direction where the girls were last seen running. Jack started after him but the Doctor held him back.

"Just let him go. Anyone who survived being possessed by the Master gets a tick in my book. Judging by the look in his eyes, I'd say he liked it a little too much". The Doctor patted Jack on the chest as the taller, broader man listened to him with a sigh. "He won't hurt anyone, definitely not the girls either".

"All right, we need to get this place set up before that friend of yours causes any more trouble", Jack looked around the debris, old burnt out computers scattered across broken tables and chairs. Spider webs glistening the ceiling and the only object which seemed to last the fire from what Jack could see was that cabinet Desiree had found with the help of her Grandfather. "I take it you're not staying?" Jack asked, noticing that the Doctor hadn't moved and instead was watching Jack rather bemused.

"Oh, no", he waved his hand a bit. "Thought I'd treat myself to a little vacation while she's refuelling, I'm pretty confident you can handle the Master on your own. Besides. Torchwood! A mere rearranging of my name, didn't you notice that? Good old Queen Victoria, oh how pleased she was when Rose and I defeated that Werewolf. Didn't know she was going to set up an organisation to stop me, though", he sniffed, feeling a little defeated. "No, no... You go ahead", Jack was beginning to look downright furious at the Doctor's attitude. "It's interesting how I tend to meet Queens and the next thing I know they're trying to kill me".

Jack realised the Doctor had changed much since their last meeting. It was as if he really didn't care about saving the Earth at all, but then again, the Doctor was now on his side of the fence. This was Torchwood. Jack had managed to save the Earth countless times from certain doom without the help of the Doctor – only to brag about it later. Jack had picked up some old cabling and was fiddling with it, yanking it to see where it led to as several old computer shells fell crashing to the concrete floor. "No... You know, you're right. You need a vacation. I suppose if it weren't for me the Torchwood motto was no longer about hunting you down. The folks in London were pretty pissed about it". Jack dropped the cabling and wandered to the pile of computer shells on the floor. He picked up an old looking drive and pursed his lips together in thought. "Odd", he began. "I thought this place was burnt out during the Second World War. This technology is far too advanced for that period of time. These chips alone were recently manufactured". He rose to full height. "I have a laptop back at the hotel. I'll check it out from there".

"Or I could hook it up to the TARDIS and..." Jack threw him a glare as the Doctor raised his hands in self defence. "Right, right. Your side of the fence. Got it. I'll just... go take a nap. Read a book!" He went inside the TARDIS and closed the door, as Jack started to wander in the direction of where John had exited. He heard the TARDIS door creep open. "Hang on. No, I can't just sit back and watch. The Master is going to take over the bodies of those in charge of this country. Can I help you... please? I don't eat much and I promise I won't get in the way of your err... Torchwood... things..."

Jack faced his old friend and shrugged his shoulders. Fair enough the Doctor would be there to help if Jack made the wrong decision, causing the death of his new friends. "All right, the least you could do is work on a better way to contain that Master friend of yours".

The Doctor skipped a little as he wandered after Jack, looking around the burnt out hub. He found it odd that he was now letting Jack take the lead, but the Doctor was constantly telling himself he was on vacation and it made him feel a little better. The TARDIS would be refuelled in a couple of days, and he hoped by then this mess would be over. Unless the Master worked out a way to close the rift entirely – BUT... the Doctor didn't think that was possible.

"How have you been?" The Doctor asked Jack, his hands in his pockets once more. "I heard about the 456..." he cut himself off, feeling the air around them turn rather heavy with remorse. "...ahh. Not a good conversation starter. I've been, good! Faced certain regeneration but slowly getting back to it although I'm not really liking this new personality. A possible side effect, I think. A little too hyper and insensitive..." he paused, Jack was ignoring him. "...silent. Got it".

Jack was thinking about the hard drive in his pocket. It seemed too recent for his own liking, and he was curious to get back to the hotel and hook it up to proper equipment so he could investigate what was on the drive. He didn't think either of the girls would have known about this place well Desiree being the exception. His thoughts had deceived him before. It was a crash nearby that alerted the pair and they broke off into a run.


	8. Chapter 8

"All right! I'm sorry!" John held up his hands in defence as Simone was wielding an old lamp post. The crash had been a table disintegrating. "How about we both just get naked and have some decent make up sex, hmm?"

Desiree was silent but shocked. Simone was still upset with how John had been lying to her for all those years, and Desiree thought it best to just stand against the wall as Simone threatened her then boyfriend.

"What's going on in here? Ohh... nice office", Jack came to a halt in the doorway as he looked around the vast room. "Could do with a paint job but yes... this will do me nicely".

"Who said this was your office?" Simone snapped at him, still wielding the lamp post. "We've got a lunatic of a demon floating around up there and you're worried about remodelling?"

"Right! Right, come on, Jack. We've got work to do". The Doctor started off in the opposite direction, not one to get involved in Torchwood related squabbles. Especially of the relationship kind.

"Who are you?" Simone asked. "Where did you come from?"

"Me! Oh, I'm the Doctor, hello!" He waved.

"As in... Jack's friend?" Desiree wondered, Simone thinking the same thing.

"Yep". Replied the Doctor with a boyish grin. "Don't worry, I'm not going to get in the way. Anyone for a jelly baby?" He pulled out a white packet of sweets and offered them around the group, Jack stunned and shaking his head quietly as did the others. Simone finally put the lamp shade down and John let out a sigh of relief. "No? Okay", he pocketed them once more and shrugged.

"Back to the surface, then. See what trouble that manic is causing". Desiree suggested. "We should stay out of the way of patrol cars, though..."

"John, Simone, I want you two to stay down here", Jack upturned an old leather seat and sat himself down in it, spinning the chair briefly and looking rather pleased with himself. "Desiree, you can take the Doctor to the surface and grab a laptop from my hotel room", he fished around in his pocket and handed her a swipe card. "You can trust him".

Desiree nodded. "If you need me, Simone's got my mobile number". She pocketed the swipe card as the Doctor joined her side. She could feel that the Doctor wasn't right... it was like he seemed to be trapped between two worlds. Trapped between regenerating into a new form and his mentality was elsewhere. Still, there was a part of him that held his intelligence and charm. He didn't seem impressed with her mind reading, for he quickly put up a mental block and threw her a dark look.

"You really should ask first. Like Jack said, I may not be all here but you can trust me". The Doctor was disappointed in himself at his state.

"Don't suppose you could fetch some lunch?" John asked, Jack raising a brow. "Well, one generally does work up an appetite following a possession".

"He's right. Just go into the Cafe, Desiree. Take some sandwiches and bottles of water. I'll leave a note for Simon in the morning". Simone gave her the keys to the Cafe and Desiree suddenly felt like the gopher of the team.

"Take this", Jack passed her one of his guns. The Doctor frowned in disappointment. "Just in case".

Desiree fumbled with all the objects her new friends had given her and she put them in her pockets of the red coat she was wearing. She fished around her pants and found a spot for the gun, nodding. "Anything else while I'm out? Alcohol, perhaps?" She raised a brow at her own joke. Desiree was getting pretty desperate, and the three shook their heads at her.

"No". Jack said, firmly. "You need to be focused, mainly for his sake", Jack gestured to the Doctor as he leant further back in the old chair, when a sudden snap came from the base and Jack went falling backward, legs in the air. John was the first to burst out laughing, Simone stifling a chuckle and Desiree giggling.

"Sorry", the Doctor grinned, pocketing his sonic screwdriver.

Jack got to his feet and smoothed down his coat. "Never mind, one can always find another chair". He shook some dust from his hair as the others stopped laughing, and the Doctor no longer seemed amused with himself. "All right, we'll keep in touch through mobile contact. I think I can stop the local authorities from tracing us..." Jack felt around his pockets and picked a small pen like device. He took Desiree's phone and fiddled with the back, scanning the device over it and doing the same to Simone's phone. "Recognise it?" Jack asked, waving it in front of the Doctor.

The Doctor thought for a minute and then gasped suddenly. "You stole that from the Matron!" He then grinned with a click of his tongue. "See. I told you I'd have an influence on you sooner or later".

"A sonic device?" John asked Jack with a roll of his eyes. "Oh come on. Those are so sixteenth century".

"I heard that!" The Doctor seemed to be affected by John's words. He sniffed. Without his Sonic Screwdriver, he would be lost. It had gotten him out of many a tight pickle. "To me, my sonic screwdriver is like a dog. It's loyal and obeys his master... usually".

"Come on, Doctor", Desiree pulled on his wrist. "We've got work to do". She tugged him a little harder and eventually the Doctor jolted back to life, skipping briefly and then stumbling as he found his legs again. "I kind of like the idea of babysitting a genius". She grinned at him, and the Doctor grinned back.

"I like this one". He said to Jack. "Back later!" The pair disappeared down the hall to the back exit where Desiree looked around for the platform, which should take them to the surface. If it still worked. The Doctor watched as Desiree felt around the wall, using her Grandfather's energy as a guide. Eventually her hand pressed against a particular brick and a tunnel of light glowed before them. Amused, the Doctor ran head long into the light. Desiree looked twice and he was gone, then she dove into the light seconds before it disappeared completely.

Jack was wandering through the halls of the hub, slowly getting a picture in his mind as to where everything used to be. Torchwood Five's hub was much longer than his, and deeper but not so much in height. To get a rough idea of height, Jack jumped on the spot and managed to touch the roof with his fingertips. He left John and Simone to their own devices, no doubt they had some making up to do. Inwardly, Jack was a little jealous of John. He'd never known his old friend to act so fondly around someone before. Well, there was that time... he started to recall their first adventure and cut himself short. As Jack rounded a corner and found a metal door sealing off a room, he put his hands against it in an attempt to push it open. Nothing happened, not even a budge. Jack loved closed doors in an old building because usually there was something of interest in there. He shoved against it with his shoulder, grunting at the pain. Nothing. He didn't want to resort to the sonic pen, so he took out his gun. Loading it with a fluid click of the upper mechanism, Jack aimed the barrel at the door lock, closing his eyes briefly as he fired three times. The casing and the bullets clinkered to the floor, and he examined the lock. It was as if it were made with some sort of unearthly metal. There wasn't even a scratch.

"Well... guess I'm going to have to pull a Doctor with this one", he took out the sonic pen and pressed a button as the device emitted a blue light and buzzed. The lock shook as long as Jack held down the button with all his strength in that index finger of his, and still it didn't budge. Out of anger, he kicked the lock and then suddenly it fell off. "Piece of sh..." he pocketed the sonic device as the door opened with a groan. Jack was impacted by dust and the smell of rotting flesh. Fishing around his pocket once more he took out a torch and shone it into the room. He found the cause of the rotten flesh smell; this area appeared to be a kitchen and in the back of the room was a fairly new refrigerator, open, leaking with lamb steaks and chicken. Jack didn't understand how the area had been isolated for so long – yet with the hard drive and now a recently used kitchen? Surely someone must have known about Torchwood Five in the recent past. He didn't want to cause alarm to Simone for the time being, she had enough to deal with. He heard something rustle past him, causing Jack to spin around with his weapon and torch still drawn. He looked down the left and right of the corridors and decided to turn right, when a large blunt object collided with the back of his head and Jack dropped face first to the floor. He stayed conscious enough to feel his gun being pried from his fingertips and a breath that smelt of the same stale meat he had encountered only seconds ago.

Simone was tidying in the room where she and John had remained. John decided to go and try to find a bathroom of some sort, and Simone was surprised when she found he had returned looking clean and refreshed.

"You know, for a place that had been completely burnt out – I just found a bathroom. Not only did it have electricity, but it had running hot water and a clean towel. My spidey sense suggests that we are not alone down here". He ran a comb through his blonde hair and noticed Simone was rather quiet. He joined her side and helped her lift up a table back onto its legs. "Talk to me. Surely you're no longer pissed at me?" He offered a strained purse of his lips, the look that normally got Simone talking. "I can assure you that the Master is no longer within me. He's gone, all right?" He looked at her as she finally met his eyes.

"I haven't been completely honest with you either, John. There's a reason why there is running water and electricity down here". Simone started, and John was beginning to look even more interested in his girlfriend. He liked a woman with dark secrets. "I don't spend all hours of the day and night at work. I've been down here... setting up Torchwood Five".

He grinned, and clapped his hands together, rubbing them. "Oh, now this is exciting. So that whole... I hate you thing was just an act?"

Simone nodded with a shrug. "Gwen Cooper has been helping me set it up after my brother disappeared several years ago. We found him only recently; it's been hard for his mentality to return". She sighed. "Jack is going to be beyond pissed when he finds out".

"He's probably picked up the obvious signs by now, kitten". His grin was only just beginning. "So, what have we got down here? Weapons? Something to stop this Master fellow with? Between you and me, that Doctor is pretty fucked if you know what I mean. With all those voices in his head..."

"I really should go looking for Jack, if Steve finds him..." Simone started off down the hall as John grabbed her wrist. "He's my brother. I know how to handle him". She turned to face John, frowning as he held a gun up.

John waved the pistol in front of her face. "Let me come with you. This has a taser on it". He frowned as Simone took the gun away from him by placing her hand over the barrel and gently lowering his arm to his waist. "God you have a horrible hold on me, woman".

"No more secrets?" She asked him, drawing him close so their waists and midsections were tightly pressed against each other. "I may even let you outrank Jack if he decides to stick around".

"So... you're the Director, hmm?" John asked her, enjoying her touch to the point where he roughly kissed her, forcing her against the wall and it was then the gunshots came which alerted the pair to a startled state. "Bloody Jack..." both mumbled under their breath.

Simone's heart leapt into her throat, horrified at the thought that Steve would be at the end of Jack's bullets. She tore off down the hallway, John shouting after her.

John wasn't sure how he was going to handle this new side of Simone. The idea of his woman wearing the pants was rather threatening.

The Doctor and Desiree had landed on the shoreline of the Brisbane River, the exit point somehow spitting them out at the Kangaroo Point cliffs. Desiree was the first to get to her feet and she looked down at the Doctor as he too stood to full height, shaking his head.

"Teleportation", he said, shaking and jumping up and down to get the jitters out of his body. "You're lucky we didn't end up on Mars! Messing around with teleportation and a solar flare is... bad news".

Desiree ignored him for a moment and looked around to get her bearings. The water from the river was lapping up at their feet, and if they didn't move soon the tide would come in. They were actually at the base of the cliffs and Desiree found herself to be looking up. "Can't see any path ways leading back up to the road... we'll need to get a bus into the city". She looked to see if the Doctor was still beside her, but of course he wasn't. He was balancing as if he were on a tight rope across the metal fence, holding his arms out gleefully and then came to a stop. "DOCTOR!" Desiree shouted, running to him. "Get down from there! You're acting like a complete fool!"

"Fool hardy", he grinned and took out his sonic screwdriver, blowing on the end of it, sticking out his tongue in concentration. He thought for a minute and pointed the screwdriver in the middle of one of the rock faces as it suddenly disappeared. "Thought as much, force field. See? That will lead us right up to the city. Think of it like an emergency exit if the team ended up out here in the middle of the night".

Desiree stared at him as he put the screwdriver in the pocket. "You're unbelievable". She jumped the fence after him and the pair hurried down the tunnel as the force field returned, the lights along the walls glistening to life.

"How come you didn't see that one coming?" The Doctor asked her, turning his head as the pair briskly walked side by side. "Would've thought your senses picked that up by now".

"I don't know", she shrugged. "It hadn't been used in a very long time; I couldn't feel any recent energy there". The pair came to a halt when they were encountered with the end of the tunnel. Desiree stuck out her hand and it went right through, the Doctor nodded and she stepped through the force field. The Doctor was right behind her.

"Wait", he held her back as a few people were walking past. Once the coast was clear, the pair stepped onto the walkway and Desiree soon realised they were in Queen Street, directly in front of Simone's cafe.

"That... was just weird", Desiree said with a shake of her head. "How could that walkway lead us right under Simone's cafe? It was as if we were just... that's impossible", she looked behind her, for the rock face was obviously no longer there.

"Seems that friend of yours has a few tricks up her sleeve". The Doctor turned his head to Desiree who sighed deeply. "Right! Let's get the supplies... and... oh", his attention turned where the televisions in the local cafe's on the street had suddenly flickered off and on again, revealing the face of a grinning madman. The Doctor slowly walked to one of the nearby cafe's as those inside were not really paying attention until the madman spoke.

"I can see you", the voice was all too familiar for the Doctor to bear. He stared up at the television rather quietly, clenching his fists in anger for the amount of times he did try to defeat the Master it never seemed to go as well as he expected. Now it appeared the Master had possessed the body of a Federal Independent Member, one who caused quite a stir during the recent election and no doubt consumed enough energy for the Master to attach to him like a ball of fluff on a dinner jacket. "Hello! Is this thing on? Nice", the Master began as he made eye contact with the Doctor and finally everyone had stopped what they were doing and crowding around the television. "As you can see, I have taken control of your networks. I've taken control of your Internet, phone lines, everything. Who would have thought this backwater country would have been so easy to invade, ah the mere mush of this human's mind was easy enough for me to sneak in and control him. Yeah, the host himself is dead. Sorry about that. I was getting tired of living with two souls. NOW! Down to business!" He rubbed his hands together eagerly as whispers from the crowd emerged in mere confusion, some were trying to ring their families but of course the phone lines were down. "Unless you lot want me to press this happy little red button here and destroy the world with a simultaneous nuclear attack, there is something I require..." He raised his finger, and the Doctor shifted in his sneakers for the next move struck him as rather odd. "...him! Yes, him. The Doctor. I want him! It's not that difficult, is it? Now go on... go and get him. First person who brings me the Doctor will get a nice little reward and I'll leave you to wallow in self pity at the madness your new Prime Minister will bring". The Doctor looked around without moving his head and could see that the Master was controlling the surveillance cameras. They now focused on him, and the Doctor's face was put up on the television. "Go forth, my minions! Remember, I want him alive and within the next twenty four hours or else it's BOOM!" His laugh echoed throughout the streets, causing chaos as the Doctor suddenly broke into a run. "You can't hide, Doctor! Not this time! I'm watching your every move!"

Desiree struggled to keep herself silent, and out of the view of the Master's ability to control the streets surveillance cameras. She had a gut feeling as long as she can be able to steal computers; somehow the Doctor will be able to bypass the Master's control on the Internet completely. Her phone started to ring, and then she reminded that they were on a different frequency to what the Master would be aware to. She answered it timidly, suddenly realising that the Doctor had disappeared. "Hello?"

"It's Simone, we need you back here".

"Did you see the broadcast?" Desiree swallowed hard. "I've lost the Doctor".

Simone swore on the other end of the line and paused for a minute. "Saw the broadcast? It was somehow broadcast through a computer I thought was inactive. All right – don't worry about the Doctor for now, come back here. We'll try and get some of these computers working again so we can form our own network".

"Don't worry about him?" Desiree snapped. "Simone! He's the reason why we're involved in this mess! Jack's gonna grill me for suggesting this but..."

"We don't turn over the innocent to the enemy unless we find a way out first". Simone sighed deeply. "Do you think the Master saw you with the Doctor?"

"No", Desiree said quietly as the streets were now buzzing with rioters and police. "Let me bring back some food... I'll come back as soon as I can".

"Please be careful. Jack's already missing and I don't want you missing as well".

"Jack's missing?" Desiree chuckled to herself. "Nah, just check out one of the old storage rooms down near the back of the Hub, the one with the big red door", she heard a surprised cry on the end of the line and merely assumed that Simone had found Jack. "I'll be back soon. I better go... I feel like he's finding out about our network..." Desiree hung up quickly and pocketed her phone. Quietly, she slipped into Simone's cafe and started to stuff a garbage bag full of sandwiches and drinks just as the windows started to smash around her from other rioters.


	9. Chapter 9

Following the conversation with Desiree, Simone found Jack just as her friend had predicted. Out cold, lying on the cement floor and tied up with a gag across his mouth. John sauntered into the room and grinned broadly.

"Christmas has come early this year". He hopped down and started to untie Jack, his friend had not woken from his unconscious state yet. John pulled the gag from Jack's mouth and the older man coughed. "Hmm, and to think I was going to violate you in so many ways".

"Not now, John", Simone put her hands on her hips and then crouched, as Jack finally became aware of where he was. "Jack... I've got a lot of explaining to do",

"No! Don't untie him!" Came a rough voice and Simone jumped to full height, turning suddenly to see a blonde man, with broad features and strong arms hovering in the doorway looking frightened. "He tried to steal our food!"

Jack sat up as John helped untie the ropes from his wrists and ankles. "Rift retardation", Jack said with a frown. "Seen it too many times for my liking", he threw the ropes to the ground and got to his feet. "You know him, Simone?"

Simone sighed deeply as John gave her a look to say it was all right to continue. She eyed Jack carefully, as the man huddled close to Simone and she put an arm around him as he sobbed. "He's my brother".

"Your brother?" Jack was surprised. Things were slowly beginning to make sense now. He held up the hard drive he had found earlier. "Recognise this, by any chance? You've been down here all this time... setting up Torchwood, behind my back?" He threw a glare to John. "and you KNEW about this?"

"Told you he'd be jealous". John merely said with a smug grin as Simone patted Steve's back and told him quietly to sit down in the corner.

"I'm not jealous. Just a little pissed off – how long have you been setting up for?" Jack rotated the Hard Drive in his hand and then placed it in his pocket. He felt as if his throat had been cut and she was holding the bloodied blade. The frustration was rising, as far as Jack was concerned he was Torchwood. He knew everything that went on in every organisation inside and out. To not know that Simone was setting this up simply made him feel betrayed. He wanted to know how long she had been setting up for – and the fact that John had no idea about it made him wonder if Simone could be trusted at all. Her brother sat in the corner, rocking back and forth as he was picking up on the energy in the room. With Simone standing there now, with her arms folded and staring at Jack with her lips pursed he simply slowly shook his head. It was the deepest level of betrayal, the new incarnation of Alice Guppy had bruised him. It was as if Jack himself was no longer the backbone of Torchwood and he wondered how many more organisations there were without his knowledge.

"Three months". Simone explained, as Jack turned away. "Gwen's been helping me. With the Rift activity... and you were gone – something had to be done". She watched as Jack put a hand on the wall and merely hung his head. "The base was here. It was just a matter of setting it up. You're right, I should have told John at least but he was keeping his own secrets from me". Simone adjusted her weight between her feet and glanced at Steve in the corner who was whimpering. For a man who had just turned thirty, he had the mentality of a four year old because of what happened to him in the Rift. Simone was disappointed with the way Jack was acting, she had heard he had a huge ego and always thought of himself as the backbone of Torchwood. She watched him with a sigh and glanced to John who said nothing. "Here", Simone passed her phone to Jack. "Contact Gwen yourself. I'm sure she'd love to hear from you, but we have more important matters at hand now. Desiree said the Doctor is missing. The Master has control of the Australian Networks... phone, internet, televisions, security cameras – everything. He's holding the country and the world hostage unless he finds the Doctor for whatever reason".

John felt as if he had been caught in the middle of the mental war. Jack's back was still turned but he had turned around to take the phone from Simone, looking even more furious. John slowly shook his head with Jack's reaction. "You've always been an egotistical maniac, obsessed with yourself. Not to say that I haven't been obsessed with myself either – but Simone was right, Jack. You were gone. You know what? Yes, I am hurt that Simone didn't tell me about the base. She got hers because I wasn't completely honest about myself either. You should have seen her when the 456 came, Jack. Simone was harbouring children in her apartment keeping them away from the military. You can act like a spoilt brat all you want Jack but in honesty – Simone will make a fine Director. You can either deal with it or run away again". He clicked his jaw, knowing Jack wouldn't like the brutal display of honesty being thrown in his face.

Jack clasped the thin iPhone tightly, tempted to snap it in half. He looked at Simone as she explained what was happening on the surface the thought of the Doctor missing hindered Jack a little. He had to put aside his feeling of betrayal and work on the matter at hand. When all this was over, he'd run again. He was firm on that idea. Torchwood seemed to be doing just fine without him. "I'm not in the mood to debate with Gwen right now", he started, as he threw a dark glare to John who caught it with a smirk. "You were here when the 456 attacked?" He couldn't understand John with the way he was speaking so openly about Simone. It was clear the untameable Time Agent had been tamed, and Jack found this amusing. Ianto had been close to taming him, but Jack didn't want to let that happen. He wasn't a one person man. He'd always amuse himself with other people who were attracted to him, Ianto being one of them. As much as he thought others saw the pair as a couple – they weren't. You Two; Ianto had said others were calling them. Jack didn't understand how 'being a couple' worked. Alice was one thing, Ianto was another. "Why didn't you call me?"

"Well, I tried", began John with a slight laugh. "Apparently you were in a bag of bits so you couldn't take my call". John was heavy with amusement in the way Jack was taking this. "Are you going to call Gwen and bitch to her how much you hate the world or are you going to snap back to your senses and help sort out this mess? Cause... I don't know how long I can go without porn. Honestly. It's driving me mad".

Simone raised her hand and threw John a look that informed him to be quiet. "You're not helping... sweetheart", the last line rolled off her tongue as if she were mocking him in front of Jack, but, she needed to pull her team together. "Desiree will be returning shortly with supplies and updates. Jack, since you know the Doctor so well I need you on the surface to find him before members of the public do. No doubt they're rioting by now. John, that computer right there", Simone pointed her index finger in its direction. "Clearly there's some more power in there if the Master managed to broadcast through it. Fix it. We'll have sex later. And Steve..." She looked to her brother. "...it's bed time for you".

Jack's jaw dropped at Simone's sudden take on the leadership role. She clearly had it down pact. "All right, kids. I'll find the Doctor. Just remember to use protection".

"Against what?" John said with a brow rise.

"You". Jack felt his previous distrust in Simone leave him almost completely. There were still bits and pieces he didn't understand, but he assumed they would be ironed out like a starch stained collar. "Save a roast beef sandwich for me", he winked, and raised his wrist where he started to fiddle with the controls on his strap. "Four and Nine..." Jack mumbled. The number Nine was dragged out as he spoke because he vanished in a bright light.

John rushed to that computer and started to attach rogue wires to it. Simone was working on keeping Steve calm, although it would be a hard task.

"The darkness is coming... the darkness is coming", he rocked back and forth in Simone's arms.

She looked up at John who was busying himself as Simone helped Steve out of the room to an area more suitable. She would lock him in there for the remainder of the situation.

"Am I going to bed now?" Steve asked, as Simone nodded.

"Yes, sweetheart, you need your rest. The Darkness won't come, I can promise you that". He was quite tall and very muscular for his age; Simone was having trouble keeping upright as he leant against her. She wandered down the hallway and into a room set up for Steve. She let go of him and he entered the room, waving, as Simone closed the door and she locked it from the outside pocketing the key. She knew he would be safer in there and less of a burden; he had everything he needed in there.

As Simone walked back to her office, she thought about the recent events of the day. It was bordering on late afternoon now. So much had happened over the last few hours since she woke up that morning. She found out that she was a reincarnated version of Jack's lover from Torchwood Three in the 1800's. She learnt about John's history and his bi-sexual nature. The Doctor appeared out of nowhere, mind clearly unstable due to his partially regenerated state. The Master had now taken control of the nation by means of technology, threatening to destroy the world if he doesn't get his hands on the Doctor for whatever reason. She sighed as she ran her fingers through her blonde hair and entered her office, seeing John sitting on the desk waiting for her.

"Is now later enough?" He asked, cocking a brow and folding his arms as his legs dangled above the floor. "The computer does have enough power to get started. The problem is, the hard drive is fried. We'll have to use the one that Jack so conveniently found".

"That's not a good idea". Simone said with a shake of her head. "There's sensitive documents on that hard drive. If Jack found it... he'd be devastated".

"Why? What else are you planning?" John looked her over. "For a woman who wouldn't let me look under the sheet the first time we got naked – you really are a piece of work". He jumped down from the desk. He picked up the computer monitor, one of the old chunky styles and set it on the desk. He then lifted up the CPU and showed Simone the casing as he lifted it off revealing the internal parts. "See what I mean? It's fried. There's no way that computer could have worked with a fried hard drive".

Simone remained quiet when John asked her about the documents on the hard drive. She scooted beside him and looked at the internal bits and pieces of the CPU. "It wasn't fried when he sent the message", she pointed at it. "Look. It's still warm". Her hand hovered over it and she drew away. "I hope Desiree comes back soon. We really need a working computer".

"It's Jack's computer. Who knows what sort of sensitive material he has on it". John smirked suggestively. "Can I play with it? Please?"

"He wouldn't let us use if he did have that sort of material on his hard drive. I'm going to check out the weapons cabinet, we need a serious upgrade". She sighed. "I still haven't received anything from Gwen, yet".

"Weapons?" John suddenly grew more interested in the topic. "If you can locate the last place we had a rift spike, I know a guy. A very good guy, actually. He owes me a favour".

"You're not going through the rift, John. Not when I need you here". Simone watched as his face fell. "Don't look at me like that". She stroked his cheek. "There's decent weapons in the cabinet further down the hallway and to the left. They're roughly fifty years old but... it's a collection that Desiree's Grandfather kept from the rift. Why don't you go and have a look at them for me? I'll try and sort out this computer". Her hand dropped to his broad shoulder. "I've never noticed those weapons before..." She tilted her head and parted his jacket. "Bloody hell, John! You're like freaking Neo with all those guns and knives!"

"There's more in the apartment. I stockpiled during the 456 invasion". He looked her over. "You wouldn't look so bad yourself with one of these", he shrugged off his jacket and unclipped his holster, wrapping it around Simone gently. "Keep it. I've had it... oh, well... it's the first weapon I ever fired". John didn't completely understand why he had just given Simone his loyal pistol, one that had been by his side throughout his escapades in the Time Agency and had gotten him out of many a sticky situation. Seeing Simone draped in his holster and favourite weapon made him step back and nod once. "You bitch. How dare you tame me!" If he wanted to, he could take the gun from her. Shoot her down. But then, Jack wouldn't like that... not one bit. He had an image then of caressing Simone, kissing her deeply as a final goodbye. He'd then take the gun from the holster and shoot her in the heart. She was driving him insane, John didn't understand these strange feelings he was getting. As he looked at her now in all her curvaceous glory he suddenly questioned himself if he really did love her. People of his race were not competent when it came to love – he rarely knew his parents to express themselves the way they do in Hollywood films. They died when he was young so it didn't matter now.

"We don't have time for this... John..." Simone began but as he put the holster around her, she stared at him in complete shock. Her fingers caressed the leather of the holster and then took the pistol from out of it. She stroked the barrel with her index finger and allowed her fingers to clasp the butt, lingering the other index finger above the trigger. She could feel it wasn't loaded and gave John a brow raise as to why he'd carry around an unloaded weapon. She then peeled off some ammunition from the holster and inserted it up the butt of the pistol and clicked it into place, holding it with a broad smile. "No safety, eh?"

John watched as she fondled his pistol. It was as if she were stroking one of those fingers against his manhood, the feeling he was getting was beyond that of lust. Despite all the madness around them on the surface, he wanted to take her right there on the desk. In his madness the gun would be a toy, perhaps allowing himself to thrust it up inside her. Yeah, there was no safety on it. John didn't roll that way. What was the point of owning a weapon if you required a safety switch? He stared at Simone and slowly made his way over to her when a brief voice interrupted them.

"I bring supplies. You guys owe me". Desiree dumped the garbage bags full of food from Simone's cafe and another garbage bag full of stolen clothes on the floor. She lifted a laptop bag from her shoulder and set it on the table. "Jack's laptop and hang on..." she sniffed the air and looked at the pair ready to engage in relations right in front of her. "...Simone! I didn't realise you were so dirty!"

Simone placed the gun back in the holster and looked at Desiree. Her young friend seemed a little dishevelled from the last hour's events, wandering the streets with the Doctor and obviously stealing supplies. She blushed when she looked at John who seemed rather please with himself, for there was indeed a strange scent in the air. "Thanks, Desiree". She gave one bag to John who sorted through the clothing and Simone sorted through the food. "What happened to the Doctor?"

Desiree sat herself down on the floor and shrugged off her red coat because the hub was much warmer than on the surface. "He just ran off when the Master pointed him out", she frowned; a little worried about her new friend. She looked around and could feel another presence amongst them but was not within the room. She knew it was Simone's brother, and to be honest, Desiree hated herself when it came to her strange accuracy for reading psychic energy. "Jack will find him. But we need to find where the Master is hiding out first". Desiree reached into the pocket of her coat and pulled out a small flask, she took off the silver top and pressed it against her lips when John suddenly took it away from her. "Oh come on, it's after four!"

John then made a bold move and drank the entire flask before Desiree. Simone was stunned, as John wiped his lips and tossed the flask over his shoulder. "Rehab taught me nothing". He simply said with a chuckle. "You call that alcohol?" He shook his head sadly. "Desiree. Your world and your alcohol – the first time I saw Jack again, I had already devoured an entire bottle of vodka; and felt nothing. Really, your attempt to kill yourself with drinks on this planet is surprisingly pathetic. When this is all over I'll take you to a bar. You won't wake up for a week when I'm through with you". He felt Simone punch him in the shoulder and he rubbed his arm, tempted to punch her back but the glare was strong enough. "Fine. You won't wake up after two days. Happy?"

Desiree blinked at John's words. She watched as her flask fell to the floor with a clink and the last spillage of her alcohol seeped into the crevices of the cement floor. Her eyes filled with rage, with all this mess going on around her she needed something to help keep her calm and John had just destroyed that. "I bet you find that funny don't you?"

"I do, yes. You're acting like a child". John found a sandwich amongst the food in the garbage bag and started to eat it. "Can we focus, please?"

"He's right, Desiree. If Jack and the Doctor can help find the Master and stop him we'll be able to set up the hub before they get back in the event the Master unleashes something unspeakable from the Rift". Simone sighed. "I just hope it doesn't come to that".

Jack popped out of his teleport to find himself on the Goodwill Bridge, looking over the Brisbane River as the sun started to set. Up ahead he could see the Doctor sitting on a bench looking rather forlorn. Jack slowly made his way over to his old friend and was quite surprised that the members of the public could not see him despite the Master making it very clear what the Doctor looked like. "Perception filter", Jack said with a short laugh "Another hub entrance". But it seemed to didn't work very well, for the Doctor was sitting there. Jack sat beside him, both in silence for a moment. "It's good to see you again". Jack said, hoping it would lift the mood somewhat.

The Doctor looked over at Jack. For the first time, Jack noticed how tired the Doctor looked. Stubble was spread across his face and cheeks, his eyes were sunken and darker. His hair was unkempt and his suit was dishevelled. For a man who was so brilliant, the Doctor sure didn't feel it. Not with all his past selves fighting for a place in his head. "Jelly baby?" The Doctor suddenly asked, holding up the white packet and Jack took one, worried what the Doctor might do if he said no. "Look at this city. Look at it! It's gorgeous, and to think... the thousands of people who live in this city alone are trying to hunt me down like a criminal". The Doctor chewed on a jelly baby himself and stuffed the bag in his pocket. "That Master sure knows how to instil fear into humans. Come on! Let's go find him".

Jack stared at his friend as he talked. The last statement caught him completely off guard and Jack grabbed his arm before the Doctor could stand up. "We can't. Not yet. Simone's still working on setting up a network; we need to figure out how he gained control in the first place".

"That's easy". The Doctor grinned, brushing Jack's hand off. "He's got his own sonic device. A little more powerful than mine but... anyway. He's gotta be planning something else. Surely he wouldn't have gone to all that trouble just to torture poor little me... no... he's gotta be holding the planet hostage for some reason – an invasion, probably. If he can harness the power of the world's network and satellites, he'll be able to control the rift". The Doctor paused. "And that's not good at all".

Jack nodded. "Where would he be? Where can you sense him?"

The Doctor closed his eyes and thought for a moment, leaning forward. Eventually he sat up again and clapped his hands. "Right underneath us", he took out his sonic device and the familiar buzzing noise emitted, as sparks flew and the pair was encased in a bright light. "Going down!"

Jack hoped the Doctor knew what he was doing.


End file.
